Eclectic and effective—this board book is the cat’s meow.
As a bevy of colored cats arrive one by one, small die-cut windows burst into color.
In this Catalonian import, a simply outlined white house waits for a prismatic collection of feline friends to return home. On the verso, readers meet and glimpse the cat that’s heading indoors; with a page turn, that cat disappears and another brightly colored die-cut window illuminates, letting readers know that kitty has made it safely inside. Using a soothing conversational tone that’s ideal for bedtime reading, the omniscient narrator cozily describes the domestic scene that awaits each cat—Little Brown Cat, for instance, returns “to a big warm bed in the big white house!”—before bidding each goodnight. It all culminates in a snuggly final page showing the kitties all bedded down. Each cat is introduced with a colored typeset, helping children predict what color window will appear next, and the cat’s names vary, with both basic monikers like Little Pink Cat and those with pizzazz, like Little Lime-Green Cat, allowing the text to be predictable without feeling formulaic. Ironically, the roughly silhouetted cats are the weakest part of the book, and the rainbow colors are somewhat muddied, though they’re still striking in the windows. Made of durable cardboard, the die-cut pages are sturdy and will hold up to enthusiastic fingers.
Eclectic and effective—this board book is the cat’s meow. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4521-8213-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2019
Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead.
An Easter-themed board-book parody of the traditional nursery rhyme.
Unfortunately, this effort is just as sugary and uninspired as The Itsy Bitsy Snowman, offered by the same pair in 2015. A cheerful white bunny hops through a pastel world to distribute candy and treats for Easter but spills his baskets. A hedgehog, fox, mouse, and various birds come to the bunny’s rescue, retrieving the candy, helping to devise a distribution plan, and hiding the eggs. Then magically, they all fly off in a hot air balloon as the little animals in the village emerge to find the treats. Without any apparent purpose, the type changes color to highlight some words. For very young children every word is new, so highlighting “tiny tail” or “friends” makes no sense. Although the text is meant to be sung, the words don't quite fit the rhythm of the original song. Moreover, there are not clear motions to accompany the text; without the fingerplay movements, this book has none of the satisfying verve of the traditional version.
Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-5621-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
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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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