As clever and funny as the first two, this super toddler’s third exploit again carries the message that there’s no substitute for parental TLC. Having already invented a motorized stroller and a self-rocking cradle, the onesie-clad genius knocks together a robotic mom to give his exhausted human one a break—but then finds himself being washed in the sink with the dirty dishes and hung out on the line to dry with the laundry. Out rushes Baby Brains’ real mom to the rescue, just as the metal one, who had been trailing an increasingly thick cloud of smoke for several pages, explodes. Wielding pen and brush with a free hand, James creates informal cartoon views of the tiny but confident-looking rugrat rejecting baby toys in favor of a laptop, chemistry lab and gas welder as his bemused but ever-fond parents look on. In the final scene, however, he nestles comfortably in his mother’s lap for a shared story as Robomom Mark Two, now only a foot high, zooms past with the vacuum cleaner—leaving Davide Calì’s similarly themed, witty but less broadly appealing Mama Robot (see above) in the dust. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3463-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2008
Categories: CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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The sultana of high-fructose sentimentality reminds readers that they really are all that.
Despite the title, we’re actually here for a couple of reasons. In fulsome if vague language Tillman embeds one message, that acts of kindness “may triple for days… / or set things in motion in different ways,” in a conceptually separate proposition that she summarizes thus: “perhaps you forgot— / a piece of the world that is precious and dear / would surely be missing if you weren’t here.” Her illustrations elaborate on both themes in equally abstract terms: a lad releases a red kite that ends up a sled for fox kits, while its ribbons add decorative touches to bird nests and a moose before finally being vigorously twirled by a girl and (startlingly) a pair of rearing tigers. Without transition the focus then shifts as the kite is abruptly replaced by a red ball. Both embodied metaphors, plus children and animals, gather at the end for a closing circle dance. The illustrator lavishes attention throughout on figures of children and wild animals, which are depicted with such microscopically precise realism that every fine hair and feather is visible, but she then floats them slightly above hazy, generic backdrops. The overall design likewise has a slapdash feel, as some spreads look relatively crowded with verses while others bear only a single line or phrase.
Patchy work, both visually and teleologically. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-05626-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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One of a four-book series designed to help the very young prepare for new siblings, this title presents a toddler-and-mother pair (the latter heavily pregnant) as they read about new babies, sort hand-me-downs, buy new toys, visit the obstetrician and the sonographer, speculate and wait. Throughout, the child asks questions and makes exclamations with complete enthusiasm: “How big is the baby? What does it eat? I felt it move! Is it a boy or girl?” Fuller’s jolly pictures present a biracial family that thoroughly enjoys every moment together. It’s a bit oversimplified, but no one can complain about the positive message it conveys, appropriately, to its baby and toddler audience. The other titles in the New Baby series are My New Baby (ISBN: 978-1-84643-276-7), Look at Me! (ISBN: 978-1-84643-278-1) and You and Me (ISBN: 978-1-84643-277-4). (Board book. 18 mos.-3)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-84643-275-0
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Child's Play
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2010
Categories: CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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