Destined to be tucked in with a shower gift to gently reassure anxious new moms that they and their babies will be perfectly...
Toddlers will get the message: your birth was eagerly anticipated; you are wanted and loved.
Framed as a tour of the home, each spread describes some part of a domicile and the activities that are at the center of a baby’s life. From the “welcome home” sign and balloons on the front door of a clapboard structure to the adoring gaze of the new, dark-skinned parents on a possibly urban stoop, each baby is welcomed with love. Both children and caregivers are ethnically diverse. The age, skin tone, and amount of hair on the baby’s head vary from spread to spread, creating an inclusive vision of the ideal family. For example, a brown-skinned man with curly hair and beard is shown reading to a slightly lighter-skinned child with straight brown hair. The previous spread shows a red-haired white child playing outside. Another page features a child with East Asian features and just a few wispy black tendrils of hair blowing out one birthday candle. Although the homes depicted seem universally secure and comfortable, the text allows for some elasticity in interpretation. The final spread describes home as “A place where you’ll always find / As much love as we can give.”
Destined to be tucked in with a shower gift to gently reassure anxious new moms that they and their babies will be perfectly happy . (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: June 27, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5344-0103-7
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
A lovely package, this quiet title will be best as a gift book for new moms eager to read aloud to the newest members of...
A mother’s observations of her new baby lead to a series of sweet comparisons to various animals.
“When I met you, you were small and trembling, and I thought you might be a little bunny. / I held you close so you were warm.” Teen author Marr (Made for You, 2014, etc.) uses playful yet comforting language in her picture-book debut. The baby’s squirming kicks remind her of a “lost kangaroo”; a lifting of the child’s head makes her think of a “curious lizard”; and the little one’s howl seems like that of a “lonely wolf.” Each of the child’s behaviors leads to a tender action taken by the mother: tucking the baby in, offering milk, and giving a bath. Each time a new creature is introduced, White gently changes the dominant color in the muted pastel palette of her watercolor and gouache illustrations. That hue is also reflected in the hand-lettered text, giving the overall design of the book a vintage feel. When the baby smiles, the mother knows “You are not a bunny-roo-lizard-wolf-kitten-piggy. You are my baby.” The final page shows the curled-up infant asleep in a pile of blankets.
A lovely package, this quiet title will be best as a gift book for new moms eager to read aloud to the newest members of their families. (Picture book. 1-3)Pub Date: April 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-399-16742-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2015
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers.
A board-book ode to parental love as old as the dinosaurs.
A line of text on the left of each spread reads like a dinosaur-themed valentine that a third grader might choose, with punishingly punny wordplay that incorporates dinosaur-related words. On the facing page a dinosaur pair—a baby and an adult—gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes against whimsical, pastel-hued prehistoric-ish backgrounds. In smaller print, in all caps, at the bottom of the left page is the scientific name for the dinosaur referenced by the text and picture followed by a helpful phonetic pronunciation guide. White-outlined footprints appear next to their names, though the white is sometimes difficult to see against the pastel pages. Ten of the best-known dinosaurs are included. Twisting the dinosaur names to fit the loving sentiments succeeds some of the time but more often results in tortured text, well beyond the understanding of the board book audience. The line accompanying two hugging velociraptors, for instance, is just confusing: “Wrap-TOR arms around me, / with you I’ll always stay.” Others are just plain clumsy: “I-wanna-GUANODON you kisses, / I truly just adore you.” Very young children, even those fascinated by dinosaurs, will not get it. Older dinosaur fans will be put off by the babyish format.
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2295-0
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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