While there are some enjoyable moments here, the overbusy design mars the entire effect.
Count a variety of animals and objects both above and below nearly full-size flaps on each page.
“ONE big doghouse—who could be inside?” Under the flap, the workmanlike text reads: “ONE smiley dog, trying to hide!” Die-cut holes offer readers a peek of what is underneath, but these glimpses are rarely a help to would-be guessers. While the cheery cartoons present the world in muted tones, the page design is very busy, and there is no unity of image or idea across double-page spreads. The book continues the pattern of counting and rhyming until the last double-page spread, where a teddy bear encourages readers to count a multitude of objects arrayed in vertical lines. Companion title Red, Blue, Peekaboo! presents the colors in similar fashion. Above the flap, items of one featured hue are joined by other objects in the shade below (purple hat/umbrella and blue shell/whale). In both books, most of the objects and animals will be easily recognizable to tykes, and each page is labeled with the color or numeral in question. The flaps, which alternate between opening from the bottom or from the top, are sturdy enough for repeat use.
While there are some enjoyable moments here, the overbusy design mars the entire effect. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: March 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-58925-581-4
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
As with many holiday gifts, the sparkly packaging may interest toddlers more than what’s inside.
Readers can count down eight of Santa's reindeer as they jump up and out of the scene.
In each one of the mostly double-page spreads, one reindeer, from Dasher to Blitzen, plays a central role in a winter activity (sledding, ski jumping, ice skating—and soccer and yoga?) that launches the creature into the air. Glitter-speckled tabs, each with small portraits of a member of Santa's herd, appear at either the top or the right side of each page, which little fingers will enjoy flipping. In what looks to be pencil-and-watercolor cartoons, Rogers uses different facial expressions, as well as collars, bows or other accessories, to distinguish the reindeer from one another. Donner (not Donder) and Blitzen are squeezed together on the penultimate spread, likely to keep the page count down. The verse mostly scans, but the rhyme scheme has become the cliché of counting books: "Eight jolly reindeer / stretching up to heaven. / Up goes Dasher / and then there are... // Seven...." Santa, his iconic sleigh and the eight reindeer in flight make a dramatic and required appearance on the book's final double-page spread.
As with many holiday gifts, the sparkly packaging may interest toddlers more than what’s inside. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Aug. 10, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-65145-5
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 2, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
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