A well-crafted app that will hold interest for little ones as they learn and practice their ABCs. (iPad alphabet app. 2-6)
An engaging ABC app encourages kids to learn and explore the alphabet.
Each page features a gray cityscape serving as a background for large representations of the letters of the alphabet. The upper- and lowercase letters enter in grand style: The “H” emerges from the yawn of a hippo, the “N” is flown in by a nightingale, and an egg cracks, and the “E” pops out. One accompanying word and illustration appear right away in color, and there are two more hidden illustrations in the gray background; their outlines flash in white until kids press them, and then they animate with color, narration and sound effects. The graphics look like simple clip art, but the animations and sound effects together are playful and effective. Some of the words are a little difficult, like “nightingale” and “zeppelin,” but generally, the words are simple and will be familiar enough to the target age group to make stretching a pleasure, not a burden. Kids can choose letters at will or go through the alphabet A-Z. Multiple kids can have profiles with their pictures and names, and there is a parents’ area that features a bar chart showing which letters have been accessed how many times for each profile. There is an accessible navigation area at the top of each page that takes kids back and forth one page or to the home screen. Lively music and sound effects can be turned on or off, and kids can choose to have male, female or both voices narrate the app. These can be set from the home page or from a pull-up menu on each page.
A well-crafted app that will hold interest for little ones as they learn and practice their ABCs. (iPad alphabet app. 2-6)Pub Date: July 4, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Kid's Academy
Review Posted Online: Aug. 14, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
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
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