Stanley and his friends learn how to mix colors while transforming ordinary cardboard boxes into a vibrant castle.
Bee’s hamster protagonist, Stanley, and his animal friends Sophie, Benjamin, and Little Woo are back in this board book. This time, they are taking white and primary paints and learning how to make secondary colors. Standing in a room full of cardboard boxes, they begin transforming them little by little, and readers will notice a red paw print, orange circles, and green stripes standing out against the brown. The work progresses until all the boxes (and animals) are decorated and cardboard towers assembled. Stanley and his friends are darling, but the way Bee applies his colors is what’s most eye-catching. The boxes look as though they were truly painted by children, a nice detail, and the sight of the animals themselves bedecked in splatters of paint rings true. All of the illustrations appear against a white background, and the text is set in a color block along the bottom of each spread; its color matches the described paint mixture in each spread. Stanley’s Toolbox finds Stanley helping Little Woo fix up his treehouse using everything from a glue gun to a drill. Though neither book does anything radically different, both are written at the right pace and level for little readers, offering illustrations that hit the mark.
Paints a sweet and colorful story. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-186-7
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Feb. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS
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An interactive egg hunt with turning-wheel and lift-the-flap elements.
This board book begins by directing readers to find the hidden eggs. Each wheel—there are four in all set into the interior pages—has several different eggs on it, and turning it reveals an egg in a little die-cut window. Spinning it further hides the egg behind one of two lift-the-flap panels—two baskets, for example—and readers must guess behind which they’ll find the egg they have chosen to track. A diagram on the back provides instructions for use, likely more helpful to caregivers than to little ones. There is no narrative in this book; it’s simply page after page of different directives along the lines of “Guess which door!” As a result, the focus is really on manipulatives and the illustrations. Fortunately, Kirwan’s spring-themed artwork is gorgeous. The backdrop of each page is flower- and leaf-themed with warm spring hues, echoing the artwork of Eastern European hand-stenciled Easter eggs, two of which appear at the end of the book. The animals, like the smiling snail and mischievous mice, are reminiscent of classic European fairy-tale creatures. The only human in the book is a dark-skinned child with tight, curly hair. The moveable pieces largely work, though at times the necessary white space under the flaps interrupts the illustration awkwardly, as when the child’s hands suddenly develop large oval holes if the spinner is not in the correct position. Overall, it’s more game than book.
There is no real story, but the moving parts are fun, and the illustrations are beautiful. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7457-0
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Chronicle
Review Posted Online: Dec. 18, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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A mix of marine-life fact and fiction introduces opposites.
With its iconic shape, the eye-catching cover cutout of a bright-orange fish is instantly appealing. Layered die cuts of decreasing size provide texture and handholds for little fingers and form the bodies of varying species of fish. Information about fish habits and habitats is crammed into wordy rhymes with the opposing terms in boldface, but the accuracy of those facts is debatable. Though it’s fair to call the eel “long and very wiggly,” contrasting it with a generic, short yellow fish that’s a rhyme-forced “giggly” introduces a jarring anthropomorphism. In fact, stereotypical human emotions or motivations are attributed to the fish on almost every page. On another page, the slow fish (the only fish not painted with a smile) says, “Even with a big head start, I knew I'd finish last”—a distressingly defeatist message in an otherwise cheery board book. Inexplicably, the final spread depicts all the fish in party hats—turning it into a birthday book. While this may extend its use in day cares, it doesn't help young children learn opposites.
A fishy tale that doesn't quite swim in the crowded sea of concept books . (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58925-215-8
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS
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