by Mara Van Fleet ; illustrated by Mara Van Fleet ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 2, 2017
Sweet and insipid.
Two very lucky children have a crafty mother who makes pajamas most children can only dream of.
Two blond, white children—a brother-and-sister duo to judge by hairstyle conventions—wear pajamas created by their mother, and what pajamas they are! Their mama has made them to look like a green dragon, a red fox, a blue elephant, a yellow lion, a brown bear, a sparkling, purple fairy, pink and white bunnies, an orange kangaroo, and white sheep. Each night they choose what they want to be. As they parade the different pajamas in front of readers, each outfit has a touch-and-feel element, though there is not much variety to the textures. The dragon pajamas have “green, bumpy scales”; the red fox pajamas sport a “soft, bushy tail”; and though the elephant pajamas are supposed to be “wrinkly” and “rough,” in reality the texture is just slightly bumpy. The only pajamas without a touch-and-feel element are the kangaroo ones, which instead have a flap that, when opened, reveals a pouch for the younger brother. Predictably, the white sheep pajamas are cuddly and cozy and make the children feel sleepy. As with so many of its ilk, the book seems geared for maximum saccharinity, with little to offer beyond the cute jammies.
Sweet and insipid. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7975-2
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 30, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
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by Dan Saks ; illustrated by Brooke Smart ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2020
A joyful celebration.
Families in a variety of configurations play, dance, and celebrate together.
The rhymed verse, based on a song from the Noodle Loaf children’s podcast, declares that “Families belong / Together like a puzzle / Different-sized people / One big snuggle.” The accompanying image shows an interracial couple of caregivers (one with brown skin and one pale) cuddling with a pajama-clad toddler with light brown skin and surrounded by two cats and a dog. Subsequent pages show a wide array of families with members of many different racial presentations engaging in bike and bus rides, indoor dance parties, and more. In some, readers see only one caregiver: a father or a grandparent, perhaps. One same-sex couple with two children in tow are expecting another child. Smart’s illustrations are playful and expressive, curating the most joyful moments of family life. The verse, punctuated by the word together, frequently set in oversized font, is gently inclusive at its best but may trip up readers with its irregular rhythms. The song that inspired the book can be found on the Noodle Loaf website.
A joyful celebration. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22276-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Rise x Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2020
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by Dan Saks ; illustrated by Brooke Smart
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by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Thomas Elliott ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 3, 2021
Guess how much you’ll be reading this.
Parent and child share a day of small adventures and cozy snuggles.
That the two happen to be tortoises is totally beside the point. Die-cut holes and shaped edges turn nearly every page flip into a surprise. Following a parental “Good morning, Baby” to greet the youngling’s “Wake up, wake up, I want to play… / The sun is up, it’s a brand new day!” the two reptiles ramble off to munch on leaves, weather a sudden rain shower, discover a flock of butterflies, climb a hill, watch the moon rise, and, at last, weary little one perched on top, settle down to snooze again. The paper engineering is ingenious. Turning a seemingly arbitrarily shaped page with a special window framing a pink butterfly fills the spread with many jewel-toned insects; even though the tortoises never change position, the scene is completely transformed. Hegarty’s rhymed narrative features lots of tender sentiments—“Wherever you are, wherever you go, / Baby, I’ll always love you so”—while steering clear of any gender references. In Elliott’s peaceful, grassy settings the wanderers’ small smiles and shared glances likewise create a sense of loving intimacy. This is likely to become a victim of its own appeal, being as the paper stock is rather too flimsy to survive much contact with toddler hands. Still, a clear winner for sharing with audiences of one or dozens.
Guess how much you’ll be reading this. (Novelty. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-3509-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021
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by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Lucy Barnard
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by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Xuan Le
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