A starter set for grown-up Babar fans who want to introduce the classic characters to their children.
A simplified and condensed version of Babar’s Little Girl (1987), starring Princess Isabelle.
Babar and Celeste welcome the new baby Isabelle to their family. The elephant calf grows from an infant to a toddler to preschooler in short order. She plays with her friends, enjoys adventure and exploration, and loves to dance and run, but most of all, she loves her family. The title is deceptive, since this is not Babar’s story, and Isabelle is only a baby for brief moment. The slight, toddler-friendly text of no more than one to three sentences per page and the iconic, anthropomorphic pachyderms will hold the interest of little ones not quite ready for the length and, yes, the violence of the first Babar story. The companion title, Babar’s Lost and Found (978-1-4197-0981-4), is a condensed version of Babar Loses His Crown (1967) and is more faithful plotwise to its original text, revolving around a mix-up at the opera. While the text is longer and more complicated than its sister book, it is simple enough for youngsters to follow, and the cartoons are as fresh and accessible as ever.
A starter set for grown-up Babar fans who want to introduce the classic characters to their children. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4197-0620-2
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s nothing new, but it’s also clearly heartfelt.
A love song from parents to their child.
This title will seem quite similar to the many others about parents’ deep love for their children. The text is wholly composed of first-person declarations of parental love, and it’s juxtaposed with illustrations of the child with one or both parents. It’s not always clear who the “I” speaking is, and there are a few pages that instead use “we.” Most sentences begin with “I love you more” phrasing to communicate that nothing could undermine parental love: “I love you more than all the sleepless nights…and all the early, tired mornings.” The accompanying pictures depict the child as a baby with weary parents. Later spreads show the child growing up, and the phrasing shifts away from the challenges of parenting to its joys and to attempts to quantify love: “I love you more than all the blades of grass at the park…and all the soccer that we played.” Throughout, Bell’s illustrations use pastel tones and soft visual texture to depict cozy, wholesome scenes that are largely redundant of the straightforward, warm text. They feature a brown-haired family with a mother, father, and child, who all appear to be white (though the father has skin that’s a shade darker than the others’).
It’s nothing new, but it’s also clearly heartfelt. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: Aug. 14, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0652-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
This TV rerun in board-book form has nothing new to offer.
Peppa hopes to join her classmates in a Halloween pumpkin competition in this adaptation of a story from the popular British television program Peppa Pig.
With the help of Granny and Grandpa Pig, Peppa turns her giant pumpkin, which is the size of a compact car, into a jack-o’-lantern. The trio is flummoxed when it comes time to transport the pumpkin to the competition, so they call on Miss Rabbit and her helicopter to airlift the pumpkin to the festivities as Peppa and her grandparents ride inside. Peppa arrives just in time for the contest and wins the prize for best flying pumpkin. The scenes look as if they are pulled directly from the television show, right down to the rectangular framing of some of the scenes. While the story is literally nothing new, the text is serviceable, describing the action in two to three sentences per page. The pumpkin-shaped book and orange foil cover will likely attract youngsters, whether they are Peppa fans or not.
This TV rerun in board-book form has nothing new to offer. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 30, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-33922-2
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2019
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