GETTING READY

Readers are invited to follow a morning routine, from getting up all the way to leaving the house.

On the cover a pair of human feet look ready to go into a pair of shiny red boots, but as readers open the book it will not be clear if the main character is human or of the teddy-bear variety. Regardless, this touch-and-feel book starts off by having readers touch the soft furry Teddy. This is just the beginning of a series of confusing discrepancies between text and illustrations. The book seems to ask children to help the main character perform a series of activities, such as getting dressed, holding the handles of a sippy cup, brushing teeth, or pushing and pulling the shiny red boots on. Yet in reality all readers can do is touch and feel the different textures. The only true interactivity is pulling the bed covers back, zipping up a jacket, and opening the door at the end of the book. It is doubtful children will find the zipper easy to operate. An easy-to-miss trail of raised dots starts at the bed and runs along every page until it ends at the beginning of a glittery yellow path on the other side of the front door.

Misses the mark.