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COUNTING WITH OWL AND BIRD

Name: COUNTING WITH OWL AND BIRD
Author: Rebecca Purcell
ISBN: 978-1-80036-011-2

From the Owl and Bird series

by Rebecca Purcell ; illustrated by Rebecca Purcell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2021

Great for toddlers who are practicing counting.

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Another well-designed concept book featuring the two slightly bemused friends.

Owl and Bird return this time for a counting walk. The slight story opens with Owl, carrying an open umbrella, and Bird on the teal-blue left-hand page and an invitation to readers to “help them count the things they see.” On the opposite, sky-blue page they count “1 / One rainbow.” Then Owl’s umbrella becomes a prop for Bird to perch on or for Owl to use to point out the next object to be counted. This pattern continues until the final spread, when Owl counts 12 stars on the sky-blue left before the story ends with “Good night, Owl and Bird” on the night-blue right. Every other page presents just the numeral within a circle, and the number and name of what is to be counted. The sans-serif white font displays cleanly against the blue backgrounds. Whimsical details in the illustrations (Owl’s pink rain boots, the two flamingos’ hats) do not distract from the primary goal of counting. And there is always the little white Bird to find. Despite the increasing number of objects per page, the design remains uncluttered and focused. Smaller objects are featured as their numbers increase, so there are three kites and five airplanes but eight spiders, 10 bumblebees, and 11 leaves. Finding the ninth apple is a bit challenging. (It’s under Owl’s wing.)

Great for toddlers who are practicing counting. (Board book. 1-4)

Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-80036-011-2

Page Count: 16

Publisher: Tiny Seed

Review Posted Online: May 4, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE MONSTER READS A BOOK
by Rebecca Purcell

- BOOK REVIEW
CAT HAS ONE SHOE
by Rebecca Purcell ; illustrated by Rebecca Purcell

- BOOK REVIEW
ZIP'S NEW BUTTON
by Rebecca Purcell

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SPOOKY POOKIE

by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 7, 2015

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.

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One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.

It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: July 7, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5

Page Count: 18

Publisher: Robin Corey/Random

Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
A DANCE WITH SANTA CLAUS
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

- BOOK REVIEW
HIPPOS REMAIN CALM
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

- BOOK REVIEW
WOO HOO! YOU'RE DOING GREAT!
by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S SPRINGTIME

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 2, 2018

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.

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Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.

This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)