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HELLO BABY ANIMALS, WHO ARE YOU?

Name: HELLO BABY ANIMALS, WHO ARE YOU?
Author: Loes Botman
ISBN: 978-1-78250-720-8

From the Hello Animals series

by Loes Botman ; illustrated by Loes Botman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 14, 2021

A darling way to learn baby animal names.

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Soft illustrations identify and name baby animals.

Most little ones are entranced at the sight of cute animals, and in this board book there are plenty of sweet baby fluffballs to hold their interest. It’s a slightly odd collection of critters, with an emphasis on barnyard friends such as lambs, a calf, and piglets—to which are added a selection of wilder things, like a baby turtle and a fawn. Succinct and repetitive text introduces the baby animals by their special names and then by their species: “I’m a clever cub, says the baby fox.” (Some readers may wish to substitute kit.) Older toddlers past the basic naming stage will enjoy the opportunity to learn that a baby deer, for instance, is referred to as a fawn. Adjectives describing the creatures, including the “wobbly foal” or “curious owlets,” are accessible vocabulary builders. Muted, mottled pastel illustrations are a welcome choice for the intimate nature of the book. Soft, smudged edges make the animals look fluffy, and the pastel lines swirling about the animals create enticing auras about them. While the animals aren’t photorealistic, they are definitely naturalistic, with close-ups of a handsome goat kid prancing and a vulnerable, big-eyed donkey foal. Background colors can sometimes be unexpected—the fox and bunny are surrounded by rich peachy, plum tones with diffuse white highlights—but they are all quite attractive.

A darling way to learn baby animal names. (Board book. 1-4)

Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-78250-720-8

Page Count: 12

Publisher: Floris

Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
HELLO ANIMALS, HOW DO YOU SLEEP?
by Loes Botman ; illustrated by Loes Botman

- BOOK REVIEW
HELLO BIRDS, WHAT DO YOU SAY?
by Loes Botman ; illustrated by Loes Botman

- BOOK REVIEW
HELLO BUGS, WHAT DO YOU DO?
by Loes Botman ; illustrated by Loes Botman

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SPOOKY POOKIE

by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 7, 2015

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.

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One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.

It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: July 7, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5

Page Count: 18

Publisher: Robin Corey/Random

Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
A DANCE WITH SANTA CLAUS
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

- BOOK REVIEW
HIPPOS REMAIN CALM
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

- BOOK REVIEW
WOO HOO! YOU'RE DOING GREAT!
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S SPRINGTIME

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 2, 2018

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.

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Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.

This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)