A good picture book on trains can be as pleasurable as witnessing the real thing tear the air and move the earth under your feet. London’s buoyant, this-side-of-simple rhymer falls into that class. Decked out with chunky, saturated-color artwork by Roche, the book explores different types of trains: great, sharking behemoths (“A train could be fast, / like a silvery gleam”) to chugalugs (“Or a train could be slow, / like a lazy stream”), along with the different freights they carry and the varying landscapes they inhabit, from the mysterious trainyards to the open plains. London has fun playing with language—“A train goes jiggly-rumba / on down that long track”—while Roche does a fine job shifting perspectives, keeping things animated, sometimes loopily so. And the trains are always swarming with people, giving readers a distinct sense that trains are far from untouchable, but very real things that they can engage; all they need is a ticket to ride (maybe mom and dad, too). London’s invitation flashes like a signal lantern and rings like a bell. All Aboard! (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-8050-7972-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet but not essential book.
A whole host of children presents a whole host of balls in this new installment in the Baby Unplugged series.
There are so many kinds of balls in this little board book. Big ball, shiny ball, game ball, plain ball, spot ball. And not all are necessarily balls. Some are round objects, like the snowball and the clay ball or the blueberry that is a “tiny ball.” Some balls are verb balls, like the “throw ball, / catch ball, / go ball, / fetch ball!” There is even a gotcha! ball that’s “not ball”—it’s a cube! And all these balls are being played with by an equally eclectic group of children. African-American, Asian, brown-skinned, and blond and brunette white children are all represented here in illustrations that are charming and clear but not particularly artful. It feels as though both author and illustrator are trying so hard to include so much that they’ve almost forgotten to have fun. It’s reminiscent of One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish but without the spark that turns an OK book into a timeless classic. Best suited for young children who are already quite verbal.
A sweet but not essential book. (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: April 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-936669-42-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: blue manatee press
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
A fishy tale that doesn't quite swim in the crowded sea of concept books
A mix of marine-life fact and fiction introduces opposites.
With its iconic shape, the eye-catching cover cutout of a bright-orange fish is instantly appealing. Layered die cuts of decreasing size provide texture and handholds for little fingers and form the bodies of varying species of fish. Information about fish habits and habitats is crammed into wordy rhymes with the opposing terms in boldface, but the accuracy of those facts is debatable. Though it’s fair to call the eel “long and very wiggly,” contrasting it with a generic, short yellow fish that’s a rhyme-forced “giggly” introduces a jarring anthropomorphism. In fact, stereotypical human emotions or motivations are attributed to the fish on almost every page. On another page, the slow fish (the only fish not painted with a smile) says, “Even with a big head start, I knew I'd finish last”—a distressingly defeatist message in an otherwise cheery board book. Inexplicably, the final spread depicts all the fish in party hats—turning it into a birthday book. While this may extend its use in day cares, it doesn't help young children learn opposites.
A fishy tale that doesn't quite swim in the crowded sea of concept books . (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58925-215-8
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
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