Readers explore basic preschool concepts with that ever-popular mouse, Maisy (Happy Birthday Maisy, 1998, etc.). Touting over 36 flaps, this giant-sized board book introduces children to counting, shapes, colors, and the notion of opposites. Cousins uses scenarios familiar to young children to underscore the concepts presented. Along with Maisy and her trio of friends, readers can toil in the garden counting insects and blossoms, choose colors for painting, clean up shapes in the playroom, and learn about opposites on the playground. What makes this bright, engaging book exceptional is its solid educational foundation that never loses its playful edge. By combining brief text with simple questions that prompt readers to investigate the flaps, Cousins successfully introduces a new idea while fostering readers' comprehension—all in a beguiling, entertaining manner. For example, the playroom features a shelf full of toys and readers are asked to identify the ones that match a particular shape. Along the bottom of the page are labeled flaps depicting each basic shape. Readers can lift the flaps to reveal the matching toy underneath—a diamond-shaped kit, a triangular hat, etc.—effectively extending the concept of shapes to incorporate real-life applications. Cousins's gaily colored, child-like illustrations feature favorite characters, with each full-bleed, two-page spread containing a myriad of flaps for little ones to lift and explore. Brimming with interactive educational opportunities—and a whole lot of fun to boot—this is a notable addition to the Maisy collection. (Board book. 2-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-7636-1189-1
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Skip it
This book wants to be feminist.
Princess Penelope Pineapple, illustrated as a white girl with dark hair and eyes, is the Amelia Bloomer of the Pineapple Kingdom. She has dresses, but she prefers to wear pants as she engages in myriad activities ranging from yoga to gardening, from piloting a plane to hosting a science fair. When it’s time for the Pineapple Ball, she imagines wearing a sparkly pants outfit, but she worries about Grand Lady Busyboots’ disapproval: “ ‘Pants have no place on a lady!’ she’d say. / ‘That’s how it has been, and that’s how it shall stay.’ ” In a moment of seeming dissonance between the text and art, Penny seems to resolve to wear pants, but then she shows up to the ball in a gown. This apparent contradiction is resolved when the family cat, Miss Fussywiggles, falls from the castle into the moat and Princess Penelope saves her—after stripping off her gown to reveal pink, flowered swimming trunks and a matching top. Impressed, Grand Lady Busyboots resolves that princesses can henceforth wear whatever they wish. While seeing a princess as savior rather than damsel in distress may still seem novel, it seems a stretch to cast pants-wearing as a broadly contested contemporary American feminist issue. Guthrie and Oppenheim’s unimaginative, singsong rhyme is matched in subtlety by Byrne’s bright illustrations.
Skip it . (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2603-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
By turning these stiff, die-cut pages, even very young children can assemble a green monster with "two big yellow eyes...a long blue nose...[and] a big red mouth with sharp white teeth..." and then make it go away again, feature by feature. Emberley, a Caldecott medalist whose delightful drawing books demonstrate a combination of rudimentary forms to create a world of images, uses simple shapes in bright colors to build a scowling, cartoonish face that seems to float against the solid black field- -scary, but deliciously so. A satisfying game that may also allay some nighttime fears. (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-316-23653-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1993
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
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