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FROM MORNING TO NIGHT

Name: FROM MORNING TO NIGHT
Author: Flavia Ruotola
ISBN: 978-1-61689-615-7

A BOOK OF HIDDEN SHAPES

by Flavia Ruotola ; illustrated by Flavia Ruotola ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 6, 2018

A concept book with a mind-expanding perspective.

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This French import uses simple techniques to encourage children to recognize familiar shapes in unusual places.

Each spread consists of a pair of illustrations, the first one a common object, the second one the same elements reoriented to represent a different object. The color palette of warm orange and blue is skillfully used to enhance the differences between the two images. A simple bowl and spoon, captioned “a morning meal” is transformed into “a magic mushroom” by means of inverting the speckled bowl and broadening the blue spoon to make it a blue stalk. An orange fruit becomes a planet when a simple orange sphere changes to blue and the blue stem becomes a tiny orange star. Similarly, an orange segment morphs into a distant planet’s orbiting moon, and a gift becomes a music box—from “a surprise” to “a song.” A simple horizontal line spanning the spread changes from “a path” sprinkled with blue dots recalling snowflakes to “the night sky” with a constellation of orange stars. Some of the pairs offer contrasting emotional perceptions: “disappointment”—an empty chest—becomes “delight”—a letter in an envelope. In the final illustration, lines of text in a book (“a story read”) become the striped sheets of a pair of twin beds (“time for bed”).

A concept book with a mind-expanding perspective. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: March 6, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-61689-615-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press

Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

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CHICKA CHICKA HO HO HO

From the Chicka Chicka Book series

by William Boniface ; illustrated by Julien Chung ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2024

A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree.

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A Christmas edition of the beloved alphabet book.

The story starts off nearly identically to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989), written by John Archambault and the late Bill Martin Jr, with the letters A, B, and C deciding to meet in the branches of a tree. This time, they’re attempting to scale a Christmas tree, not a coconut tree, and the letters are strung together like garland. A, B, and C are joined by the other letters, and of course they all “slip, slop, topple, plop!” right down the tree. At the bottom, they discover an assortment of gifts, all in a variety of shapes. As a team, the letters and presents organize themselves to get back up on the Christmas tree and get a star to the top. Holiday iterations of favorite tales often fall flat, but this take succeeds. The gifts are an easy way to reinforce another preschool concept—shapes—and the text uses just enough of the original to be familiar. The rhyming works, sticking to the cadence of the source material. The illustrations pay homage to the late Lois Ehlert’s, featuring the same bold block letters, though they lack some of the whimsy and personality of the original. Otherwise, everything is similarly brightly colored and simply drawn. Those familiar with the classic will be drawn to this one, but newcomers can enjoy it on its own.

A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree. (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024

ISBN: 9781665954761

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

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THE CRAYONS GIVE THANKS

by Drew Daywalt & illustrated by Oliver Jeffers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 10, 2024

Formulaic fare that will nevertheless charm devoted followers.

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A few familiar friends explore gratitude.

Daywalt’s crayons have observed many holidays, from Christmas to Earth Day. On Thanksgiving, these anthropomorphic school supplies wax (pun intended) poetic about their favorite things to draw. “Blue is thankful for blueberries.” (The accompanying illustration depicts the stubby crayon leaping into a pile of the fruit.) Black, on a page topped by dark scribbles, “is thankful for night skies.” In an aside, Black adds, “Big, beautiful night skies I get to color in all by myself!” (Blue is perfectly fine with this.) Pink pipes up with “Three glorious words. Amazon. River. Dolphins”—which may spur readers to research these creatures. The tale turns a bit meta, too. Teal is thankful for family—both Blue and Green. Red, surrounded by hearts, is thankful for Neon Green Highlighter, who was accidentally dropped into the crayon box—a “dreamboat” for sure. Recognizable jokes from previous works make appearances; these callbacks will delight staunch fans, though others will find them tiring. Standard cheer and platitudes abound; the crayons are ultimately most grateful for each other.

Formulaic fare that will nevertheless charm devoted followers. (Picture book. 3-6)