A neat feat.
A variety of animals, 16 in all, shows off what their feet can do.
“HIGH FEET / A mountain goat’s toes help it climb and hold on to the smallest bits of rock.” So begins the text’s repeated formula, continuing with “SLOW FEET” (giant tortoise), “FAST FEET” (ostrich), “SNOW FEET” (polar bear), and so on. The simple facts presented in Mara’s text are simultaneously simple and engaging, and many of the animals she chooses to highlight are not the usual board-book suspects. Alongside the aforementioned animals, readers meet the sloth, the gecko, and the blue-footed booby, among others. Vidal’s boldly graphic art, created with flat planes of highly saturated color, is eye-catching. The larger-than-normal trim size serves these full-bleed, double-page scenes, which illustrate each creature’s fancy footwork and hint at its habitat. They do not, however, necessarily give readers a very good sense of what each animal’s foot really looks like. The final double-page spread reveals all of the creatures depicted and invites youngsters to contemplate their own toes by asking, “What can YOUR FEET do?”
A neat feat. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2318-6
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The sparkly cover and less-than-exciting interactive elements fail to fully convey the majesty of the watery deep.
A diver directly recruits his audience to explore the salty sea.
Closed, the shaped cover follows the curve of the diver’s helmet; open, it evokes goggles through which readers can explore the deep. A variety of underwater creatures are revealed through lifting flaps; brief rhyming text on the undersides of the flaps provides a little informational heft. These rhymes are not distinguished by their lyricism, alas. “Jellyfish are pretty— / some glow in the dark. / But don't swim too close— / their sting leaves a mark.” The simply drawn creatures are not depicted to scale. The seahorse dominates its page, while the toothy shark appears shorter than the sea turtle. Two-toned blue backgrounds evoke waves. Space Walk uses an identical format to survey the planets (all eight of them) and is equally superficial.
The sparkly cover and less-than-exciting interactive elements fail to fully convey the majesty of the watery deep. (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: March 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4027-8525-2
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: June 12, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2012
Pure unmitigated sleepy-time pleasure.
Klassen’s inimitable blend of cozy and curious is on flagrant display in this tale of personalized forest management.
“This is your sun. It is coming up for you.” Klassen allows the youngest of readers to put together a beguiling woodland scene. Each object in the forest is bedecked with the deadpan eyes the artist is known for. Like other titles in the series, this one presents typical items (trees, rocks, a stream), but it distinguishes itself by including a solitary forest ghost who “is nice. He only comes out at night.” It’s a tiny yet whimsical detail that imbues the tale with an enchanting sense of unpredictability. When day shifts to night, readers are assured that “this is your forest. Now it is done.” The sun sinks, and they’re treated to a surreal scene as all the items appear to doze off: “Now everyone is closing their eyes.” Happily, the ghost has a brief solo moment on the very edge of the forest on the final page. Readers will experience both the comfort of putting a community of anthropomorphized objects to sleep and the power of creating it in the first place.
Pure unmitigated sleepy-time pleasure. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781536230833
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 9, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
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