Neatly bridges the gap between board books and more complex seek-and-find titles.
From the prolific board-book creator, a picture book that teaches young preschoolers to notice details.
Two double-page spreads introduce each section’s theme. A third (and in one case fourth) spread is devoted to a specific object: pigs for the farm, seahorses for the sea, and airplanes for things that go. Nine animals appear on the first spread of the baby-animals section before spreads focusing on giraffes and elephants. The seek-and-find activities grow increasingly challenging, as the differences become ever more subtle. Instructions set in white text within one large, colored dot on each spread begin “looky looky.” Clues in four smaller dots per spread point to sometimes silly features in the illustrations, such as a pig with a mustache. Occasional clues challenge emergent readers to find words printed on the page. The generous square format allows plenty of room for details in the pictures to stand out. Animals and objects outlined in Magsamen’s trademark applique-style faux stitching are clear against solid backgrounds. Cloying and clunky rhymes that open and close the book come across as unnecessary filler given the self-explanatory nature of the seek-and-find activity.
Neatly bridges the gap between board books and more complex seek-and-find titles. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-72821-408-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A timely message in the wrong format.
This book delivers a message on the power of collective action.
As the book opens, a child looks at a lone star shining in the sky: “One star shines as distant light.” After the turn of the page, the child now sees what looks like the Milky Way: “And when stars shine together, they make our galaxy.” The book goes on to give a number of similar examples to reinforce the message of the power that comes from working together, ending with: “One of us can speak up for justice / And when we speak up together we create a world of possibility.” In the current atmosphere of strife and discord that divides our country, this is certainly a welcome message. Perhaps, though, the board-book set is not the right audience. As a picture book aimed at a slightly older group with an information page at the end explaining some of the illustrations, it might work well. As it is, however, some of the visual references will merely puzzle a toddler—and some adults. For example, a group of angry-looking people raising their fists and singing together may not look like “harmony” to a toddler—unless they know about the New Zealand haka. There is an unexplained frog motif that runs through the book that may also mystify readers. Nagara’s brilliant illustrations portray people of many ethnic backgrounds.
A timely message in the wrong format. (Board book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64421-084-0
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Triangle Square Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021
Skimpy with just six spreads but, like its companions, a simple, serene seasonal posy.
Carter completes his round of seasonal tributes with pop-up sprays of luscious-looking small fruits, garden bounty, and bright flowers.
As before, the locale is a generalized western United States, and both early- and late-season flora and foliage are on display in the same scenes. Along with lots of labels for the neatly limned animals and vegetation in each broad, idyllic landscape—from a “cedar waxwing” nibbling on a “cherry” to the marbled-paper “chickens” pecking beneath a tree heavy with ripe apples—he adds leading questions (“Who eats the flowers?” “Who looks like a stick?”) to invite closer looks. Frisky “chipmunks” are named in the first tableau, then visible without an identifier in each of the following five for younger viewers to point out. Highlighted by a spiraling cucumber vine that turns the vegetable garden into a convincing tangle, the pop-ups are simple and (relatively) sturdy but rear gracefully to surprising heights considering the volume’s small trim size.
Skimpy with just six spreads but, like its companions, a simple, serene seasonal posy. (Informational pop-up picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2832-7
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2018
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