A celebration of baby love as it’s carried out all over the world.
Diverse caregivers and babies populate this picture-book depiction of caring and carrying.
Inclusivity is a hallmark of this book, but it stumbles a bit at the outset by naming two regions alongside nations: “From West Africa to Peru, from Egypt to Canada’s Far North, from Korea to India, from Poland to China and Afghanistan…families carry their babies in many different ways.” Why not name a specific West African nation or culture? A specific Arctic people? Nevertheless, depictions of families in those places and in that order use detailed, striking cut-paper collages to consciously highlight and value diversity. For example, girls and women wear the hijab on the spreads for Egypt and Afghanistan, and the depicted Korean father uses a wheelchair while wearing his baby on his chest in a carrier. Some spreads are less invested in culturally specific modes than are others. The mother in West Africa, for example, simply carries her baby in her arms, and the Egyptian brother carries his baby sibling on his hip. Others, like what seems to be a depiction of an Inuit amauti in the North Canada spread, are culturally grounded. Repetition of the phrase “upsy-daisy, baby” threads through all interactions, culminating in a scene with a loving multiracial family in an unspecified waterside setting, where a sister picks up her baby sibling.
A celebration of baby love as it’s carried out all over the world. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 15, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-77147-176-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
This TV rerun in board-book form has nothing new to offer.
Peppa hopes to join her classmates in a Halloween pumpkin competition in this adaptation of a story from the popular British television program Peppa Pig.
With the help of Granny and Grandpa Pig, Peppa turns her giant pumpkin, which is the size of a compact car, into a jack-o’-lantern. The trio is flummoxed when it comes time to transport the pumpkin to the competition, so they call on Miss Rabbit and her helicopter to airlift the pumpkin to the festivities as Peppa and her grandparents ride inside. Peppa arrives just in time for the contest and wins the prize for best flying pumpkin. The scenes look as if they are pulled directly from the television show, right down to the rectangular framing of some of the scenes. While the story is literally nothing new, the text is serviceable, describing the action in two to three sentences per page. The pumpkin-shaped book and orange foil cover will likely attract youngsters, whether they are Peppa fans or not.
This TV rerun in board-book form has nothing new to offer. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 30, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-33922-2
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2019
A soothing bedtime reminder of a parent’s unconditional love.
Grammy Award–winning singer/songwriter Monét’s picture-book debut reassures the very young that their caregivers are always watching over them.
A smiling yellow star watches the equally cheerful moon; both are heavily anthropomorphized, with eyelashes for the moon and pink cheeks for the star. A page turn reveals the star, now downcast and in the corner of a mostly dark spread: “Sometimes the sky is dark and you can’t see the moon at all.” The following spread, depicting a sparkly sky with both characters back in view, reminds children that the moon is there, even when it’s not visible: “Think of me as the moon / It’s always in the sky / Just like I will forever be / a bright light in your life.” Both orbs beam. “I’ll always be your moon / You’ll always be my star / Just keep me in your heart and / I’ll be everywhere you are.” This becomes the refrain after a few more verses that continue the theme of the moon as a metaphor for emotionally present, ever-loving caregivers. Little ones will happily repeat the words as they’re lulled to sleep. The book ends with a heartfelt dedication from the author to her daughter and to parents who balance caregiving duties with careers. Monét notes that she set out to show children that their parents’ devotion endures no matter what—a goal achieved by both text and art.
A soothing bedtime reminder of a parent’s unconditional love. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780593698419
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
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