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SEASHELL

Name: SEASHELL
Author: Amy Sky Koster
ISBN: 978-1-56846-354-4

by Amy Sky Koster ; illustrated by Lisel Jane Ashlock ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 2, 2021

Beautiful illustrations lack spark but will still make readers long to beachcomb.

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Crisp, meticulously accurate illustrations of shells pair with predictable rhyming couplets.

Locating a perfect, unbroken shell is one of life’s small delights, and this board book shares that sense of wonder. Opening on a child with tousled black hair listening to a seashell, the narrative drifts through various elegant, ink-drawn shells, from the crowd-pleasing “pearl shell” (a mussel) or “round shell” (a sand dollar) to the lesser-known “winged shell” (a piddock) or “spotted shell” (a junonia), before closing with a different child gazing at a hermit crab claiming its own shell. All children pictured have pale skin. The rhyming text, which incorporates the word shell in each two-word couplet, rolls smoothly enough off the tongue, but some information is lacking. There’s no context to explain the “lei shell” necklace in the key labelling the shells, and why have northern cowrie shells been designated “play shell[s]”? That same feeling of vagueness brings down the illustrations. While the naturalistic hues are luminous against spare white backgrounds, the precisely drawn shells seem untethered from sand or seashore. Decoratively arranged sprigs of seaweed surrounding the shells are attractive but static, making the shells feel like an artfully curated museum exhibit. Matte pages are lovely to touch but will bend easily, and the edges are sharp, suiting them for older children.

Beautiful illustrations lack spark but will still make readers long to beachcomb. (Board book. 2-4)

Pub Date: March 2, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-56846-354-4

Page Count: 18

Publisher: Creative Editions/Creative Company

Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
EGG
by Amy Sky Koster ; illustrated by Lisel Jane Ashlock

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BABIES AROUND THE WORLD

by Puck ; illustrated by Violet Lemay ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 4, 2017

A cheery board book to reinforce the oneness of babykind.

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Ten babies in 10 countries greet friends in almost 10 languages.

Countries of origin are subtly identified. For example, on the first spread, NYC is emblazoned on a blond, white baby’s hat as well as a brown baby’s scoot-car taxi. On the next spread, “Mexico City” is written on a light brown toddler’s bike. A flag in each illustration provides another hint. However, the languages are not named, so on first reading, the fine but important differences between Spanish and Portuguese are easily missed. This is also a problem on pages showing transliterated Arabic from Cairo and Afrikaans from Cape Town. Similarly, Chinese and Japanese are transliterated, without use of traditional hànzì or kanji characters. British English is treated as a separate language, though it is, after all, still English. French (spoken by 67 million people) is included, but German, Russian, and Hindi (spoken by 101 million, 145 million, and 370 million respectively) are not. English translations are included in a slightly smaller font. This world survey comes full circle, ending in San Francisco with a beige baby sleeping in an equally beige parent’s arms. The message of diversity is reinforced by images of three babies—one light brown, one medium brown, one white—in windows on the final spread.

A cheery board book to reinforce the oneness of babykind. (Board book. 2-4)

Pub Date: April 4, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-938093-87-6

Page Count: 20

Publisher: Duo Press

Review Posted Online: April 25, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

- BOOK REVIEW
NEW YORK BABY
by Puck & illustrated by Violet Lemay

- BOOK REVIEW
123 TEXAS
by Puck & illustrated by Kevin Somers

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CLIMATE CHANGE FOR BABIES

From the Baby University series

by Chris Ferrie & Katherina Petrou ; illustrated by Chris Ferrie ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 18, 2020

Adults looking for an easy entry into this subject will not be disappointed.

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This book presents a simplified explanation of the role the atmosphere plays in controlling climate.

The authors present a planet as a ball and its atmosphere as a blanket that envelops the ball. If the blanket is thick, the planet will be hot, as is the case for Venus. If the blanket is thin, the planet is cold, as with Mars. Planet Earth has a blanket that traps “just the right amount of heat.” The authors explain trees, animals, and oceans are part of what makes Earth’s atmosphere “just right.” “But…Uh-oh! People on Earth are changing the blanket!” The book goes on to explain how some human activities are sending “greenhouse gases” into the atmosphere, thus “making the blanket heavier and thicker” and “making Earth feel unwell.” In the case of a planet feeling unwell, what would the symptoms be? Sea-level rises that lead to erosion, flooding, and island loss, along with extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, blizzards, and wildfires. Ending on a constructive note, the authors name a few of the remedies to “help our Earth before it’s too late!” By using the blanket analogy, alongside simple and clear illustrations, this otherwise complex topic becomes very accessible to young children, though caregivers will need to help with the specialized vocabulary.

Adults looking for an easy entry into this subject will not be disappointed. (Board book. 3-4)