I AM A ZAMBONI MACHINE

Name: I AM A ZAMBONI MACHINE
Author: Kevin Viola
ISBN: 978-1-338-27773-9

by Kevin Viola ; illustrated by Paola Migliari & Laura Rigo ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 28, 2018

While an audience of young vehicle aficionados or avid skaters might be attracted, this is a disappointing and poorly...

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Learn how Zambonis clean ice in this awkwardly shaped book.

In the voice of the Zamboni, dull pronouncements about each step of the ice-cleaning process give readers a rudimentary but adequate overview of how the vehicle works. The book is cut into the shape of a Zamboni machine (and driver), but the unusual format adds nothing of substance and even detracts from the story. Each page turn removes a section of the Zamboni, but the image under the cutaway doesn’t necessarily match, creating pages with two confusingly juxtaposed scenes. Though the pages are thick, they are prone to fraying, and the edges remain sharp and jab fingers painfully, especially around the severe cuts defining the driver’s face. The pen-and-ink–style digital art is underwhelming, and attempts to make the art feel lively fall flat. A puppy sitting next to the driver is far too rabbitlike, and the American flag found on every page looks odd, as if a poor quality sticker were applied over the images. There’s a single hockey player of color; the driver and crowds are white.

While an audience of young vehicle aficionados or avid skaters might be attracted, this is a disappointing and poorly designed book . (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-338-27773-9

Page Count: 8

Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic

Review Posted Online: July 23, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

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MY ANIMAL ALBUM

by Virginie Aracil ; illustrated by Virginie Aracil ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 5, 2018

This breezy, warm board book will be a welcome addition to many small humans’ habitats.

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A sunny and bright animal-themed picture dictionary for the lap-sit set.

Bring on the herons and toucans; this is indeed a real album of animals! In a welcome change of pace, illustrator Aracil doesn’t stop at the same-old, same-old cat/dog/horse but forges into new zoological territory, introducing moles, boars, marmots, and other lesser-known critters. The animals are attractive in their saturated pastel colors and smudgy style that mimics scribbly crayon coloring. Expressive faces and animated poses, such as a monkey swinging, an octopus inking, or flies circling a cow plop, keep the book light and provide rich opportunities for adult-child conversation. Unlike so many frenetic, overbusy picture dictionaries, the spacious placement of the animals across the full-page spreads establishes a leisurely pace, and having the animals organized into 12 different animal habitats keeps things orderly. Tall, thin type neatly labels the animals, though the few sentences arbitrarily interspersed are strangely generic in comparison to the chipper illustrations. It’s unfortunate that there are no children of color among the kids scattered within the “in the home” and “on the farm” sections. Elegantly designed fabric tabs on the right margin act as a rudimentary index but are even better for tiny fingers to grasp, complementing the already toddler-friendly diminutive trim.

This breezy, warm board book will be a welcome addition to many small humans’ habitats. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: June 5, 2018

ISBN: 979-1-02760-368-8

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle

Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

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MR. BEAR'S BIRTHDAY
by Virginie Aracil ; illustrated by Virginie Aracil ; translated by Wendeline A. Hardenberg

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MR. BEAR'S LITTLE NUMBERS
by Virginie Aracil ; illustrated by Virginie Aracil

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KISSES!
by Virginie Aracil ; illustrated by Virginie Aracil

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LET'S PLAY BASEBALL

From the Let's Play series

by Nancy Hall ; illustrated by Nancy Hall ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 13, 2018

While it is (mostly) an appropriately simple introduction to the sport, the lack of player diversity is discouraging, if not...

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A baseball-shaped primer for the littlest sluggers.

Brimming with baseball facts, each round page presents heavily captioned photos and one or two sentences of declarative text. Baseball vocabulary abounds, and little ones can learn the names of the equipment, the positions, various kinds of pitches (“The pitch can be a curveball, slider, fastball, or sinker”), and a few different rules (“If the batter hits the ball, they run to first base”). In the photos, almost all the players, who have a range of hair lengths and look as though they could be both male and female, are white. The final double-page spread shows two different celebratory shots of two apparently all-white Little League teams, with nary a person of color in sight. The small trim size is approximately 5 inches in diameter, which confines the little action that is portrayed, and the narrow binding will likely not survive robust play or library circulation.

While it is (mostly) an appropriately simple introduction to the sport, the lack of player diversity is discouraging, if not out-and-out astonishing. (Board book. 2-3)