With or without cocoa, savor this one slowly, especially on long winter days when toddlers are stuck indoors.
Nothing much really happens in this board book, and that’s perfectly OK.
Instead, following the pattern set in previous titles in the Mindfulness Moments for Kids series, Willey, a children’s yoga-and-mindfulness musician, translates the philosophy of mindfulness into practical, everyday terms. On a chilly day, Fox, the anthropomorphic protagonist, joins a small group of friends (who are also all anthropomorphic animals) in the forest to drink hot cocoa. The text demonstrates how a simple act like enjoying a hot drink can be treated as a mindfulness exercise. Fox brings her attention to the present moment as she blows on the hot cocoa, deeply inhales the delicious aroma, then sips and savors the treat. Young readers are guided to slow their breath and breathe in and out along with Fox: “Fox blows on her hot cocoa to cool it off. Can you blow on your hot cocoa?” The simple language makes each step of the process very clear: “Slooowly blow the air out.” The animals appear distinctly meditative as they sit cross-legged with eyes closed, patiently waiting for the cocoa to grow cool. The result? “Now Fox feels warm, cozy, and calm.” The illustrations, rendered in bright, almost psychedelic colors with colored snowflakes shining in the animals’ fur, is a striking contrast to the book’s calming message.
With or without cocoa, savor this one slowly, especially on long winter days when toddlers are stuck indoors. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Dec. 7, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-11987-7
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Rodale Kids
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2021
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires.
Little Blue Truck feels, well, blue when he delivers valentine after valentine but receives nary a one.
His bed overflowing with cards, Blue sets out to deliver a yellow card with purple polka dots and a shiny purple heart to Hen, one with a shiny fuchsia heart to Pig, a big, shiny, red heart-shaped card to Horse, and so on. With each delivery there is an exchange of Beeps from Blue and the appropriate animal sounds from his friends, Blue’s Beeps always set in blue and the animal’s vocalization in a color that matches the card it receives. But as Blue heads home, his deliveries complete, his headlight eyes are sad and his front bumper droops ever so slightly. Blue is therefore surprised (but readers may not be) when he pulls into his garage to be greeted by all his friends with a shiny blue valentine just for him. In this, Blue’s seventh outing, it’s not just the sturdy protagonist that seems to be wilting. Schertle’s verse, usually reliable, stumbles more than once; stanzas such as “But Valentine’s Day / didn’t seem much fun / when he didn’t get cards / from anyone” will cause hitches during read-alouds. The illustrations, done by Joseph in the style of original series collaborator Jill McElmurry, are pleasant enough, but his compositions often feel stiff and forced.
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Dec. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-358-27244-1
Page Count: 20
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers.
A board-book ode to parental love as old as the dinosaurs.
A line of text on the left of each spread reads like a dinosaur-themed valentine that a third grader might choose, with punishingly punny wordplay that incorporates dinosaur-related words. On the facing page a dinosaur pair—a baby and an adult—gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes against whimsical, pastel-hued prehistoric-ish backgrounds. In smaller print, in all caps, at the bottom of the left page is the scientific name for the dinosaur referenced by the text and picture followed by a helpful phonetic pronunciation guide. White-outlined footprints appear next to their names, though the white is sometimes difficult to see against the pastel pages. Ten of the best-known dinosaurs are included. Twisting the dinosaur names to fit the loving sentiments succeeds some of the time but more often results in tortured text, well beyond the understanding of the board book audience. The line accompanying two hugging velociraptors, for instance, is just confusing: “Wrap-TOR arms around me, / with you I’ll always stay.” Others are just plain clumsy: “I-wanna-GUANODON you kisses, / I truly just adore you.” Very young children, even those fascinated by dinosaurs, will not get it. Older dinosaur fans will be put off by the babyish format.
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2295-0
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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