This storybook’s repeating lyrics and cartoonish illustrations will appeal to its preschooler audience.
A centipede finds that he has everything he needs in this simple, sing-along picture book by MacKinnon (Erpill the Caterpillar, 2011) and illustrator McIntosh (Jessie, You’re So Messy!, 2016).
Ippy, an orange-and-yellow, glasses-wearing centipede, seems to have it all. In a series of four-page verses accompanied by full-page, cleverly anthropomorphic illustrations, readers are told about all the things that Ippy has to be grateful for. After each set of items, readers repeat the question “What more does he need?” Ippy begins with showing appreciation for his feet; the next verse covers singing and running; the following one reveals all the toys and belongings that he has; and the book ends by celebrating Ippy’s loving family. Although the structure may imply that there’s always something else to add to a list of what one needs, young readers will clearly understand that the author intends for a loving family to be the most important list item. The framework also allows children to brainstorm about things left out: toothbrushes and hairbrushes, food for picnics, and so on. Skilled teachers may direct such conversations into a comparison of wants versus needs and steer kids toward appreciating the things that they have. Sheet music is included for a potential singalong.
This storybook’s repeating lyrics and cartoonish illustrations will appeal to its preschooler audience.Pub Date: April 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4602-9352-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Sept. 5, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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