FUNNY FACE, SUNNY FACE

What are we going to do today?

“Bunny face, sunny face, wake up… / with a funny face!” Brief, catchy rhymes feature basic body parts (hair, hands, noses and feet, to name a few) with a touch of whimsy. They team nicely with bright, cheerful images centered on children and their animal friends to describe some of the ins and outs of being a toddler in this light stroll through a typical day, from morning to night. Toddlers will bounce along to the rhythm and giggle at the onomatopoeic wordplay as the friendly, multiethnic youngsters that populate the pictures nicely illustrate the text with warmth and energy. The vocabulary is on target, and it’s easy to imagine children joining in with the warm, songlike wording. The pattern established by the page turns will encourage participation and guessing at the rhymes. A nice choice for those learning how to name the parts of the body, an enjoyable read and, of course, a proper goodnight book: “Nosy heads, cozy heads, all tired out… / and dozy heads.”

A simple, lively rhyme describing a toddler's day, with warm, joyful images that tykes and their caregivers will happily embrace.