A pleasant brain-tickler for toddlers old enough to make the metaphorical leap.
Little ones learn about the “clothes” animals wear.
A sheep wears a “fluffy jacket,” and a snake wears a “snug stocking” in this board book from the author/illustrator of Everyone Poops. The small board book is illustrated in Gomi’s trademark style: rounded, simple animals sit against a colorful background in the center of the recto, while the text accompanies on the verso. The colors are muted and the animals offer no expression, a refreshing change of pace from the constantly smiling animals in so many other board books. Some little ones might be confused by some vocabulary (adults need to be prepared to explain what a “fancy cardigan” is), but the book entertains regardless. It’s also thought-provoking, as with the exception of the human boy that closes the story, the clothing mentioned is all metaphorical: from the goldfish’s “tie-dye skirt” to the zebra’s “striped pajamas,” the articles of clothing are all the animals’ natural scales, feathers, or fur. The end involves a brown toddler boy who discovers he is wearing “…nothing?” (depicted with rudimentary anatomical detail) and quickly puts on clothes. For little readers who hate getting dressed, this might help spark the desire.
A pleasant brain-tickler for toddlers old enough to make the metaphorical leap. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4521-5028-4
Page Count: 20
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery.
A troop of cats traverse a spooky landscape as they make their way to a party hosted by ghosts.
Each double-page spread shows the felines’ encounters with the likes of an owl, jack-o’-lanterns or a bat. One or two of these creepy meetings may be too abstract for the youngest readers, as the cats hear eerie noises with no discernible source on the page. The text, which consists of one rhyming couplet per scene, mostly scans despite a couple of wobbles: “Five black cats get a bit of a scare / As the flip-flapping wings of a bat fill the air.” The sleek, slightly retro art, likely created using a computer, depicts the cats cavorting at night through a shadowy cityscape, the countryside and a haunted house; they may scare some toddlers and delight others. A brighter color palette would have given the project a friendlier, more universal appeal. Luckily, the well-lit, final party scene provides a playful conclusion.
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-58925-611-8
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
Fun format; bland text.
A hefty board book filled with ruminations on the nature of love.
While love is the topic of this board book, it’s the inventive gatefolds and charmingly vintage illustrations that readers will fall for. Brimming with sweeping declarations along the lines of “Love is / strong. // You have my back and I’ll always have yours,” the text sounds like a series of greeting cards strung together. It’s benign enough, but are most toddlers interested in generic proclamations about love? Some statements, like the ones on “unsinkable” hippos or a panda parent holding a cub “steady,” could introduce new vocabulary. At least there’s plenty of winsome critters to fawn over as the surprisingly sturdy flaps tell dramatic little ministories for each cartoon-style animal species. A downcast baby giraffe looks longingly up at a too-high tasty branch; lift a flap to bring an adult giraffe—and the delicacy—down to the baby, or watch an adventurous young fox retreat into a fold-down–flap burrow to learn that “my heart will always be home with you.” At points, the pages are tricky to turn in the correct order, but clever touches, like a series of folds that slow readers down to a sloth’s speed, make up for it. The book concludes with a gatefold revealing a vibrant playground populated with racially and ethnically diverse humans; two are wheelchair users.
Fun format; bland text. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3153-2
Page Count: 84
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021
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