A basic conversation starter that may have a place in the book barns of infant and toddler classrooms.
Ten pages, most with just one clearly labeled image and a tactile surprise, make this French import a suitable addition to the crowded farm field for the very youngest babies.
A hen and a slightly fuzzy chick share the opening double-page spread with a rooster. On subsequent pages, stylized illustrations of a cow, a tractor, a dog, and a horse are easily identified by even very young children, but they may be disappointed at the subtlety of their touch-and-feel elements. The “wheat field,” with raised gold leaves against a yellow background, is challenging both tactilely and as vocabulary. Almost identical “farmers” sport the same brown boots and green coveralls. One has brown skin and short black hair and wears a sun hat, and the other has pale skin and long, red hair that is tied with a scarf, cuing them as male and female, respectively. Feminists might wonder why his tool is active (a shiny rake) while hers is passive (a small, shiny pail). The most successful tactile elements are the pig, whose mud is genuinely sticky, and the sheep’s white fleece. All the people and animals have the same eyes—a white circle with inset black semicircle—positioned so they seem to be looking across the page to their neighbors. Information that older children might look for about noises, habitats, or farm life will not be found here.
A basic conversation starter that may have a place in the book barns of infant and toddler classrooms. (Board book. 3-18 mos.)Pub Date: June 5, 2018
ISBN: 979-1-02760-369-5
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
Simple, encouraging text, charming photographs, straightforward, unpretentious diversity, and adorable animals—what’s not to...
This entry-level early reader/picture book pairs children with farm animals.
Using a simple, effective template—a full-page photograph on the recto page and a bordered spot photo above the text on the verso—Rotner delivers an amiable picture book that presents racially and ethnically diverse kids interacting (mostly in the cuddling department) with the adult and baby animals typically found on a farm. Chickens, chicks, cats, kittens, dogs, puppies, pigs, piglets, cows, and calves are all represented. While a couple of double-page spreads show the larger adult animals—pigs and cows—without a child, most of the rest portray a delighted child hugging a compliant critter. The text, simple and repetitive, changes only the name for the animal depicted in the photo on that spread: “I like the cat”; “I like the piglet.” In this way, reading comprehension for new readers is supported in an enjoyable, appealing way, since the photo of the animal reinforces the new word. It’s hard to go wrong combining cute kids with adorable animals, but special kudos must be given for the very natural way Rotner has included diversity—it’s especially gratifying to see diversity normalized and validated early, at the same time that reading comprehension is taught.
Simple, encouraging text, charming photographs, straightforward, unpretentious diversity, and adorable animals—what’s not to like? (Picture book/early reader. 2-6)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3833-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
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