Perfectly captures bedtime for baby from a parental perspective.
Baby winds down for bed.
Alexander and Mikai detail the steps needed to get a sweet baby to sleep. The baby is treated to a relaxing bath, dressed in fresh jammies, read a story, and given a cuddle and kiss before drifting off to sleep. Mikai’s illustrations carry the text. The use of color shows the sky darkening, plays off of the gold of a parent’s jewelry, and conveys warmth and comfort. As the baby lies in the crib looking up at their parents, the light through the slats plays across the little one’s face and the bed linens. The baby’s “tired eyes” and deep yawn playfully match the family pup’s. And in the most compelling moment in the book, a close-up of the baby’s parents shows them leaning in and giving one final, loving goodnight kiss. The illustrations capture the parents’ loving gazes, their patience and love, and the feeling of watching a wide-awake baby become a peaceful, sleeping one. The baby and parents are Black. While there are many bedtime board books for baby, this one stands out for its incredible illustrations and for centering a family of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Perfectly captures bedtime for baby from a parental perspective. (Board book. 0-1)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-81406-4
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
A delightfully silly celebration of familial love.
A child in search of the best hugger takes a bedtime tour of the world’s most unusual embraces.
In the opening pages of this rhyming picture book, an unnamed narrator asks a curly-haired, tan-skinned child who they think gives the best hugs. At the narrator’s behest, the protagonist spends their bedtime routine receiving affection from a wacky cast of creatures, ranging from meerkats to porcupines to narwhals. These animals have a variety of body types, but even those with a lack of limbs still express their love; the seahorse, for example, gives the child a “smooch” right before bathtime, and a grinning cobra offers the child a “clinch,” wrapping itself around their leg. Although many of the animals prove to be more prickly than cozy—the narrator points out, for example, the sharpness of bird beaks and porcupine quills—even the snuggliest koalas and bears cannot compare to the best hug of all: a parent’s embrace right before bedtime. The use of second-person address combined with the protagonist’s beautifully illustrated facial expressions and the buoyant, clever lines of verse render this book a hilarious and whimsical ride sure to delight both children and the adults who read to them. The pictures and text work together to create a clear narrative arc for the protagonist, and though the ending is a bit predictable, it’s nevertheless a wonderful payoff. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A delightfully silly celebration of familial love. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-5476-1236-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This gooey sentiment almost gets out of hand with the pink, sparkly cover, but the friendly art makes it worth a look-see.
Round and friendly cartoon animal parents demonstrate how they take care of and show affection for their babies.
A bear, dog, elephant and more hug, tickle and bathe, respectively, a cub, puppy and calf. The loving critters are drawn with bold, brown lines, and muted swaths of blue, brown, aqua and cream fill them out. Many of the details on the animals, such as the interiors of the cats’ ears and the seals’ and whales’ tails, are heart-shaped. Hearts also appear in the background patterns that subtly emulate the creatures’ environs, such as heart-shaped leaves that appear behind the koala duo. The disjointed text, written in a variety of bubbly fonts, is made up of short, two- to five-word phrases on each spread describing the action: “I love to HUG you / tickle you / sing to you softly / carry you / bathe you / kiss you always / Baby, I LOVE you!”
This gooey sentiment almost gets out of hand with the pink, sparkly cover, but the friendly art makes it worth a look-see. (Board book. 3 mos.-1)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-54045-2
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
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