PLANTS

Learn the names of exuberantly collaged plants and animals in seven different languages.

Bold botanical collages made from a loud assortment of recycled papers and newsprint dominate this board book’s largely white pages. Among the well-chosen assortment of plants are some that may be intimately familiar to many North American readers, like sunflower or apple tree, but there are also intriguing, lower-profile selections, such as baobab tree, mimosa, or snake plant, which might provide opportunities to learn about new flora and fauna. Befitting its towering status, the sequoia tree must be turned to portrait orientation, an enjoyable feature. Numbered and corresponding with a key on the back cover, the English, Chinese, Hindi, Spanish, French, Arabic, and Esperanto versions of the plant species are printed about the collage, albeit a bit haphazardly. The three languages that do not use the roman alphabet are also presented in romanized form; there is no pronunciation guide. Companion title Animals shares the same art style and features 17 different species. Occasionally in both books, the collaged paper is a tad busy, making the art feel slightly muddied, and some of the animals’ eyes, made of cut newsprint letters, have an eerily uncanny feel (looking at you, deer!). Extra touches of whimsy, such as a rainbow chameleon enthusiastically hunting a hopping cricket, make it satisfying to read.

A pleasant multilingual introduction.