This deceptively simple concept book is the opposite of confusing.
A guessing game about opposites in a cleverly designed board book that epitomizes the maxim “show, don’t tell.”
The rather abstract concept of opposites is successfully demonstrated in Baruzzi’s whimsical, graphically flat cartoon illustrations. Older children will quickly learn the formula. The left-hand page of each spread poses a binary choice with the first option illustrated on the facing page. But pull the gatefolded page to the right, and it expands to a full 13-inch illustration of the second one. So a small blue truck is shown to be pulling a large blue-and-yellow excavator, one sheep is revealed to be part of a flock, closed window shutters open to a sunny view, etc. Opening each flap provides an “aha” moment, if not exactly a surprise. Most of the choices are obvious, though one might wonder why fish in an aquarium stay only in the hidden section and how a shirt came to be dirtied on only one side. Similarly, the thin pencil has no logical relationship to the wide bridge; the edges of the bridge just fold conveniently to create a yellow colored pencil. But these are small matters. With the text limited to just one three-word question (“Short or long?”) per spread, young readers are allowed to use their own words to describe what pulling the flap reveals.
This deceptively simple concept book is the opposite of confusing. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: April 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-988-8341-37-5
Page Count: 20
Publisher: minedition
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday.
Animal parents declare their love for their offspring in alphabetical order.
Each page displays an enormous capital letter, one line of verse with the keyword capitalized, and a loving nonhuman parent gazing adoringly at their baby. “A is for Always. I always love you more. / B is for Butterfly kisses. It’s you that I adore.” While not named or labelled as such, the A is also for an alligator and its hatchling and B is for a butterfly and a butterfly child (not a caterpillar—biology is not the aim of this title) interacting in some way with the said letter. For E there are an elephant and a calf; U features a unicorn and foal; and X, keyed to the last letter of the animal’s name, corresponds to a fox and three pups. The final double-page spread shows all the featured creatures and their babies as the last line declares: “Baby, I love you from A to Z!” The verse is standard fare and appropriately sentimental. The art is cartoony-cute and populated by suitably loving critters on solid backgrounds. Hearts accent each scene, but the theme of the project is never in any doubt.
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2095-6
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.
This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.
Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
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