Neatly encapsulates the three-ring circus that is a little tyke’s world and gives children an opportunity to practice all...
Richard Scarry has some competition in this effort, which follows a toddler-age bunny and his mother around town on their errands.
Filled with verbs that end in –ing, the rhythmic verses form a nice cadence and challenge readers to spot the characters that are performing each action. “Pancakes flipping. / Cutting, clipping. / Tossing, fetching, / bending, stretching. // Brushing, shaving. / Good-bye waving— / my town in the morn.” The bunny, usually in his pram, and his mother are easy to spot on each page as they watch the kids in the schoolyard, stare pop-eyed at the rescue vehicles converging to put out a burning sausage, mail a letter, visit a hospital patient, read a book outside the library and take the bus, among other things. Once they get home, in a scene reminiscent of Kevin Lewis and Daniel Kirk’s Chugga-Chugga Choo-Choo (1999), the living room floor displays a very familiar scene. The acrylic illustrations are bright and busy, full of details to spot, animals to identify and things to find and count. Similar animal characters to Timmers’ Who is Driving? (2007) populate this outing, their huge eyes dominating their giant heads, while tiny legs protrude from below stylish outfits, all adding to their charming appeal.
Neatly encapsulates the three-ring circus that is a little tyke’s world and gives children an opportunity to practice all kinds of skills. (Picture book. 1-5)Pub Date: March 5, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-59990-785-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A winner.
A mundane task fills with delicious thrills.
Lucy asks permission to play with her new red wagon, so mom agreeably sends her to market with it—but, hmm, “That sounded like a chore. Lucy didn’t want to do chores.” Never fear; this journey is anything but dull. Adroitly pairing innocently understated prose with pictures of simple but imaginative adventures, Liwska invites readers to giggle at Lucy’s impressive escapades that unfold entirely visually. When the rainy countryside becomes a roaring ocean, the wagon’s a sailboat riding cresting waves. The wagon also becomes a rocket ship, a train, a construction-site truck and a covered wagon. At the carnival/circus (market), “Lucy neatly loaded the wagon with vegetables from her list”—by juggling them with help from a trapeze flyer. The illustrator’s pencil work is nimble, her backgrounds airy and free, with hatched grasses for these child animals—cousins of her characters in Deborah Underwood’s Quiet Book (2010)—to romp in. The colors glow softly. Red wagon’s last role? The perfect nap-spot for a girl all played out.
A winner. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25237-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Dec. 22, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2010
Overall, a delightful collection—priced so that it’s easy to buy several to give as gifts.
Looking for an attractive compendium of nursery rhymes, songs, games, and lullabies all in one place? These 192 pages will deliver the goods, and then some.
The one-page introduction emphasizes the importance of nursery rhymes in the lives of young children: they engage the imagination, develop skills, and foster a love of reading and the spoken word. The contents are organized into six categories that bundle together songs, action rhymes, rhymes about animals, games, counting rhymes, and lullabies. The rhymes are set on full pages or double-page spreads and illustrated with an overall retro look in a mix of styles and media that incorporates thumbprints, collage, cut paper, childlike cartoons, dramatic use of display type, and more. “I’m a Little Teapot” features smiling faces on teapot and cup and a palette of pink, red, and teal, while “Old MacDonald” is rendered in a folk-art style that pops with bright yellows, reds, and greens. Instructions for the action rhymes and the games appear in teeny tiny print at the end of each respective chapter. The die-cut board cover is a plus, as it will stand up to repeated readings. Though each rhyme is illustrated differently, unfortunately and strangely, there is no credit or acknowledgement of the artists. While some of the graphic settings are so overdesigned they are difficult to read, there are so many rhymes that it’s easy enough to skip several and still feel sated.
Overall, a delightful collection—priced so that it’s easy to buy several to give as gifts. (Nursery rhymes. 1-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62686-683-6
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Silver Dolphin
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
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