This is one to pore over—visually appealing, intellectually satisfying, and fun to boot.
This oversized board book highlights both familiar and unusual animals in a variety of habitats.
Fans of Richard Scarry will feel an instant affinity for this ambitious effort, in which each impressive double-page spread offers a panoramic view of a particular region of the world. The scenes are populated by endearing cartoon mice and dotted with some recognizable icons to suggest general location (though, regrettably, the regions are not explicitly identified). Above and around each landscape are drawings of animals that can be found in that particular region. Each spread includes around 20 animals, from the typical, such as the peacock and orangutan, to the relatively unusual, like the Komodo dragon, the wombat, and the kiwi. The title’s only text consists of labels for all of the animals as well as certain elements of the landscape, such as, for example, “volcano” and “big city.” Refreshingly, none of the landscapes is exoticized: evidence of modern human habitation and industry exist side by side with the iconically picturesque. Readers will enjoy seeing familiar and new animals in the context of their habitats, as well as following the antics of the busy little mice, two of whom can be found in every region, riding in a yellow hot air balloon and gazing out over the wonderful world below.
This is one to pore over—visually appealing, intellectually satisfying, and fun to boot. (Board book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-7765-7012-6
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Gecko Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 25, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable.
You think you know shapes? Animals? Blend them together, and you might see them both a little differently!
What a mischievous twist on a concept book! With wordplay and a few groan-inducing puns, Neal creates connections among animals and shapes that are both unexpected and so seemingly obvious that readers might wonder why they didn’t see them all along. Of course, a “lazy turtle” meeting an oval would create the side-splitting combo of a “SLOW-VAL.” A dramatic page turn transforms a deeply saturated, clean-lined green oval by superimposing a head and turtle shell atop, with watery blue ripples completing the illusion. Minimal backgrounds and sketchy, impressionistic detailing keep the focus right on the zany animals. Beginning with simple shapes, the geometric forms become more complicated as the book advances, taking readers from a “soaring bird” that meets a triangle to become a “FLY-ANGLE” to a “sleepy lion” nonagon “YAWN-AGON.” Its companion text, Animal Colors, delves into color theory, this time creating entirely hybrid animals, such as the “GREEN WHION” with maned head and whale’s tail made from a “blue whale and a yellow lion.” It’s a compelling way to visualize color mixing, and like Animal Shapes, it’s got verve. Who doesn’t want to shout out that a yellow kangaroo/green moose blend is a “CHARTREUSE KANGAMOOSE”?
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0534-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...
A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.
As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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