Who knew a tutu-clad clan could have so much fun?
Under the guise of counting from one to 10, exuberant animals express their love for tutus.
A goofy-looking penguin declares its love for the pink tutu around its waist. Soon other animals join in: a bear, in a double-tiered purple tutu; a bug—in a “teeny tiny tutu,” of course; a toucan; a gnu—“who knew?”; two tunas; a ewe; an elephant; and a crocodile. But this is much more than a counting book; it is a rollicking tutu lovefest expressed with plenty of alliteration, rhythm, and, most especially, a clever play on homophones: “ ‘I know a ewe with a new tutu.’ / ‘You do?’ / ‘I do.’ / ‘Woo-hoo!’ / ‘Yodel-lay-hee-EWE!’ ” And that’s not all; there’s even a little sharing thrown in for good measure when the elephant reveals “I wish I had a tutu too,” and the crocodile responds with “I have TWO tutus! I can share my blue tutu!” With 10 creatures now in tutus, “ENOUGH with the tutu talk already. It’s time to… / DANCE!” What fun, and then: “Phew.” Burach’s bright cartoons are whimsical and humorous, the animals’ faces brimming with expression. Large, pink numerals appear on recto in each spread that introduces a new number while on verso they are spelled out in pink capital letters.
Who knew a tutu-clad clan could have so much fun? (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 3, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-338-50427-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
No doubt preschoolers will enjoy learning about the various breeds of cat, but it’s the whimsical illustrations that really...
A carnival theme runs through the illustrations in this brief introduction to different breeds of cats.
Rhyming text and a window at the center of the right-hand pages suggest a certain type of cat. For example: the first window frames the paws and part of the face of an orange-and-black kitty cat, and the accompanying text reads: “Orange and black / from head to toe. / Could that be a….” Turn the page for the answer—“Calico!”—and an illustration of the calico cat grinning while swinging from a trapeze bar. The artwork, created with sepia ink, watercolor, and wax resist on paper, offers lovely, detailed pictures of all the felines frolicking about in carnival settings. In addition to the calico, the book features a tabby, Siamese, Persian, Maine coon, bobtail, Bombay, Russian blue, and a Scottish fold. The kitty riddles are framed with scenes of a little girl trying to identify a black-and-white cat, and the final heartwarming pages read: “Here comes that cat. / I know what kind. / He’s just a stray. / That cat is… // Mine!”
No doubt preschoolers will enjoy learning about the various breeds of cat, but it’s the whimsical illustrations that really make this one something to purr about. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4598-0686-3
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Oct. 13, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Here’s hoping Deneux can find a more developmentally appropriate package for his accessible cartoons.
This French import is an encyclopedic exploration of the world of a 2-year-old bunny named Jojo.
On thinner-than-normal board pages, readers learn about Jojo and his family, Jojo’s house, his neighborhood and other places he visits, and various animals. Each section is divided by a tabbed page of thick paperboard. Deneux’s graphically simple and appealing cartoons on mostly white backgrounds in warm and inviting colors are the attraction here. Everyday objects are recognizable without being boring. The disjointed animal section is the least successful, and the spider and octopus as well as many insects have incorrect numbers of legs. The text, set in a difficult-to-read scriptlike type, consists of short sentences describing the scene (there is no story here) and captions just below the objects and animals. The whole package sports a thick paperboard “house” glued to the front cover, and a handle made of cord is fastened to the spine. These gimmicks undoubtedly triggered the choking-hazard symbol (indicating that the book is inappropriate for children under 3) found on the back of the book, despite the suggestion right above it that reads “Ages 18 months and up.”
Here’s hoping Deneux can find a more developmentally appropriate package for his accessible cartoons. (Board book. 3-4)Pub Date: March 25, 2014
ISBN: 978-2-84801-943-7
Page Count: 60
Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
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