A month-to-month guide for expectant older siblings.
The opening text offers “Congratulations!” to soon-to-be big brothers and sisters, assuring the racially diverse group of children depicted, “You’re going to be a very important part of their life.” While this last pronoun is gender-inclusive with regard to a new baby on the way, the text as a whole reinforces a strict gender binary in its address of brothers and sisters and in contemplating whether the baby will be a boy or a girl. Heteronormativity is also apparent in repeated references to a mom with illustrations that appear to depict only mom and dad couples. (A more inclusive, comparable title would be Cory Silverberg and Fiona Smyth’s What Makes a Baby, 2013). Alongside these concerns, however, is accessible content regarding gestation that will answer many young children’s questions about pregnancy, fetal development, and birth. Included in the cartoon-style art, for example, are depictions of various foods and other objects that approximate the average size of a developing baby in the womb, ranging from “a speck of sand at the seaside” for Month 1 to a watermelon at Month 9. Additional information about fetal activity and characteristics is included on each spread, too, and there’s careful attention to respect for pregnant and postpartum parents’ need for rest and support.
Informative—though not expansive—in its vision for explaining gestation to children. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-61067-953-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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A retelling of the classic fairy tale with India as its setting.
This latest addition to the Once Upon A World series tells the well-known story of the maiden with beautiful long tresses locked away in a tower by an evil witch and the prince who falls in love with her. As with Perkins’ Cinderella (illustrated by Sandra Equihua, 2016) and Snow White (illustrated by Misa Saburi, 2016), the text has been simplified for a younger audience, and the distinguishing twist here is its setting in India. The mixed-media illustrations of plants, animals, village life, and, of course, Rapunzel, the witch, and the prince come alive in warm, saturated colors. Other than the visuals, there is little to differentiate the story from traditional tellings. As always, it is still the prince who will eventually lead Rapunzel to her salvation by taking her to his kingdom far away from the witch, but that is the nature of fairy tales. The only quibble with this book and indeed with this series is the board-book format. Given the fact that the audience most likely to enjoy it is beyond the board-book age, a full-size book would have done more justice to the vibrant artwork.
Adults wishing to expand the worldviews of their young charges beyond Eurocentric interpretations will find plenty of visual delights in this one, though they’ll wish it were bigger. (Board book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 21, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-9072-6
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 17, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Bearing the tagline “A lift-the-flap book of discovery,” this board book for older children is meant to inspire garden explorations.
Its inviting house-shaped design with multiple peep-hole windows hints at what children will find inside. The first page explains that “A bug hotel is a multistory homemade habitat where creepy crawlies of all shapes and sizes can find a place to stay!” The benefits of providing accommodations for six different garden critters are then detailed, one per double-page spread. Information about each creature’s ideal environment and how humans can foster that habitat is behind the largest flap on each spread, which also includes a cutout through which the insect can be seen. “Snails come out mainly at night, so a dark and protected habitat helps to keep them cool, happy and safe from predators….” Smaller flaps discuss characteristics of each critter—pollination for bees, metamorphosis for butterflies, etc. The final spread reviews the various materials needed to attract different bugs to the garden. However, there are no instructions included or even websites to consult to assist readers in actually constructing a bug hotel. Birdhouse, published simultaneously using the same format, is somewhat more successful, possibly because birdhouses are more common.
Lots of detail and complex vocabulary mean most young children won’t linger past check-in at this hotel; older children will still need help from a caregiver or teacher . (Board book. 4-6)Pub Date: June 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-61067-766-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: June 11, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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