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WHAT DO YOU SEE?

Name: WHAT DO YOU SEE?
Author: Kyla Ryman
ISBN: 978-0-9970587-0-3

From the Mini Museum series

by Kyla Ryman ; illustrated by Wangechi Mutu ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2016

Absolutely not the way to introduce very small children to this artist’s work

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Surreal imagery is paired to narrative text that prompts readers to interpret it.

This board book challenges readers from the outset by demanding a 90-degree rotation so that the pages turn from bottom to top. In the first double-page spread, readers see parrots flying around what appears to be mauve palm fronds silhouetted against a pink circle. The text is baffling: “I see a person tumbling away! / What do you see?” Readers who squint will discern, above the palm fronds and parrots, the faint image of what appears to be a white woman in a bathing suit tumbling forward. But they will have to squint hard. Subsequent spreads vary in their visual coherence. Readers will probably see the “hummingbird landing gingerly,” but a visual jumble of tendrils that the narrative describes as “triangles falling to the ground” will take quite a lot of staring at to parse. The open-ended “What do you see” that appears on each spread taunts its infant-and-toddler audience to make sense of the developmentally inappropriate visual and conceptual images. A rope resolves into a snake; dark-pink blossoms fade into a mottled pink and purple background. The final image pulls back to present the previous images as details from Le Noble Savage, a monumental 2006 work by Kenyan-American artist Mutu glossed as “a woman standing powerful and strong”; readers will likely interpret the figure as a woman, but the placement of a dark shape where her nose should be makes her face look distressingly like a skull.

Absolutely not the way to introduce very small children to this artist’s work . (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-9970587-0-3

Page Count: 20

Publisher: Home Grown

Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

- BOOK REVIEW
AIR
by Kyla Ryman ; illustrated by Nathalie Trovato

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SMILE, POUT-POUT FISH

by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 7, 2014

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.

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This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.

Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8

Page Count: 12

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORRY-WORRY WHALE AND THE HALLOWEEN SCARIES
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORRY-WORRY WHALE MADE 32 MISTAKES
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORRY-WORRY WHALE AND THE CLASSROOM JITTERS
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

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LLAMA LLAMA SHAPES

From the Learning With Llama Llama series

developed by Anna Dewdney ; illustrated by JT Morrow ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 7, 2023

An invitation for readers to learn through observation.

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Llama Llama and Mama spot different shapes at the farmers market.

Dewdney’s iconic llama stars in this board book, a part of the Learning With Llama Llama series. The story showcases five shapes: rectangles, squares, triangles, circles, and stars. Rather than simply showing the shapes and naming them, illustrator Morrow embeds them inside scenes from the farmers market. Each page turn uncovers a different shape. Signage and a shopping bag pop as rectangles, while umbrellas, a slice of watermelon, and the peaks of the tents form triangles. Shapes that appeared on previous pages are visible even as the story progresses, and the final page helps readers revisit and recall shapes they’ve already found. There are plenty of engaging details to keep readers looking, including other animal shoppers, kite-flying, and sudden, surprising rain. The text is concise, and each spread features a simple question inviting participation. This title is more captivating than other shape concept books, especially those that show block-colored shapes without context. Llama Llama’s popularity will make this a hit with fans, and readers looking for substance will find it. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An invitation for readers to learn through observation. (Board book. 1-3)