Despite cheery design, too abstract and uncontextualized to make code inviting for any age group, least of all the babies...
A lift-the-flap board-book introduction to HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
This brightly colored, 12-page board book seeks to introduce young readers to different types of code. Its three sections each consist of two double-page spreads: the first introduces a type of code, and the second gives various informational tidbits. The strongest section is the last one, JavaScript, which offers copious definitions and a code language that in itself is the most self-explanatory. The second section, CSS, features trivia displayed in an amusing way—namely a “Fonts” flap, under which codes for the font selection and style used on the flap are written. The initial section, HTML, the most basic webpage coding, is a bit of a train wreck. Certain parts use insufficient code (for instance, the “<a>” flap is useless without any demonstration of it in action, and the “Attributes” box references quotation marks that don’t appear, which will puzzle readers unfamiliar enough to know to look for them in the CSS section—i.e., all babies). Worst, factually incorrect information is presented—the “<img>” flap claims that an image “must have two attributes: src and alt”; while all images have a source—src—the alternative text, alt, is not necessary for the code to function.
Despite cheery design, too abstract and uncontextualized to make code inviting for any age group, least of all the babies and toddlers for whom board books are typically published. (Board book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 3, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0311-2
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
A disappointing follow-up.
Inventor Izzy Gizmo is back in this sequel to her eponymous debut (2017).
While busily inventing one day, Izzy receives an invitation from the Genius Guild to their annual convention. Though Izzy’s “inventions…don’t always work,” Grandpa (apparently her sole caregiver) encourages her to go. The next day they undertake a long journey “over fields, hills, and waves” and “mile after mile” to isolated Technoff Isle. There, Izzy finds she must compete against four other kids to create the most impressive machine. The colorful, detail-rich illustrations chronicle how poor Izzy is thwarted at every turn by Abi von Lavish, a Veruca Salt–esque character who takes all the supplies for herself. But when Abi abandons her project, Izzy salvages the pieces and decides to take Grandpa’s advice to create a machine that “can really be put to good use.” A frustrated Izzy’s impatience with a friend almost foils her chance at the prize, but all’s well that ends well. There’s much to like: Brown-skinned inventor girl Izzy is an appealing character, it’s great to see a nurturing brown-skinned male caregiver, the idea of an “Invention Convention” is fun, and a sustainable-energy invention is laudable. However, these elements don’t make up for rhymes that often feel forced and a lackluster story.
A disappointing follow-up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-164-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
Parent-child love and affection, appealingly presented, with the added attraction of the seasonal content and lack of gender...
A polar-bear parent speaks poetically of love for a child.
A genderless adult and cub travel through the landscapes of an arctic year. Each of the softly rendered double-page paintings has a very different feel and color palette as the pair go through the seasons, walking through wintry ice and snow and green summer meadows, cavorting in the blue ocean, watching whales, and playing beside musk oxen. The rhymes of the four-line stanzas are not forced, as is the case too often in picture books of this type: “When cold, winter winds / blow the leaves far and wide, / You’ll cross the great icebergs / with me by your side.” On a dark, snowy night, the loving parent says: “But for now, cuddle close / while the stars softly shine. // I’ll always be yours, / and you’ll always be mine.” As the last illustration shows the pair curled up for sleep, young listeners will be lulled to sweet dreams by the calm tenor of the pictures and the words. While far from original, this timeless theme is always in demand, and the combination of delightful illustrations and poetry that scans well make this a good choice for early-childhood classrooms, public libraries, and one-on-one home read-alouds.
Parent-child love and affection, appealingly presented, with the added attraction of the seasonal content and lack of gender restrictions. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-68010-070-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
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