Brief—but surprisingly useful, and adorable to boot.
A cute, purple hippo models winterwear in a variety of colors and makes a snowman an offer it can’t refuse.
This sweet and simple board book engages children on several levels, first by introducing colors and various winter garments, then by encouraging them to review those colors—reading them, if they’re able—and count the number of instances of each. Not bad, given the deceptively simple narrative. The book opens with the unnamed pachyderm protagonist at the window, watching the snow fall. A series of two-panel spreads follows, text on verso, illustration on recto. “Where are my yellow mittens?” asks the hippo with a puzzled look on its face. The question is answered with a turn of the page: “Here are my yellow mittens,” the hippo announces, forefeet snugly fitted inside the protective handgear in question. The rest of the book follows suit, with a green scarf, a red coat, and a blue hat. The charming illustrations of the toddler hippo, buried beneath preposterously thick layerings of scarf on one page or eyes obscured by an impossibly floppy hat on another, should provoke happy giggles. Once bundled, the little hippo runs outside and exchanges all that winter gear with a snowman, making off with its yummy “orange” carrot nose. The final two pages review the colors, spelled out letter by letter, and the names of the pictured items (gloves, scarves, carrots, etc.) and invite readers to count how many times each appears.
Brief—but surprisingly useful, and adorable to boot. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-53411-002-1
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 4, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An excellent, rounded effort from a creator who knows how to deliver.
The farmyard's chickens experience Halloween.
A round, full moon shines in the sky, and the chickens of Boynton's barnyard are feeling “nervous.” Pumpkins shine “with flickering eyes,” witches and wizards wander the pastures, and one chicken has seen “a mouse of enormous size.” It’s Halloween night, and readers will delight as the chickens huddle together and try to figure out what's going on. All ends well, of course, and in Boynton's trademark silly style. (It’s really quite remarkable how her ranks of white, yellow-beaked chickens evoke rows of candy corn.) At this point parents and children know what they're in for when they pick up a book by the prolific author, and she doesn't disappoint here. The chickens are silly, the pigs are cute, and the coloring and illustrations evoke a warmth that little ones wary of Halloween will appreciate. For children leery of the ghouls and goblins lurking in the holiday's iconography, this is a perfect antidote, emphasizing all the fun Halloween has to offer.
An excellent, rounded effort from a creator who knows how to deliver. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7611-9300-5
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Workman
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.
This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.
Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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