Engaging art and attention to cadence and rhythm should make for a read-aloud winner.
A dog and child walk around their neighborhood.
An adorable little white pup with black spots and a brownish patch over its eye nearly springs off the cover and into readers’ laps, setting the tone for the story within. The title page showcases the eager canine, leash in mouth, while the copyright and dedication spread feature the sprightly pooch already leaping along the sidewalk, its child trailing behind. Richmond’s ink, watercolor, and digital art creates a homey city with soft-colored brownstones, storefronts, and people of varying shades. The first page of text echoes the title, declaring, “a hop is up,” while the illustration shows the little white child holding the leash as the excitable canine hops on a gate. Observant readers will spy the reason for the dog’s hop, which becomes readily apparent in the next spread. Bicyclists, dancers, and others offer examples of direction, movement, and motion. Richmond highlights exemplifying characters with bold colors, favoring a more muted palette for background people and places. The charming, minimalist ball of furry energy is adorable in both form and exuberance (indeed, those paws rarely touch the ground!). A child of color protagonist would have been nice, but there are plenty of diverse skin tones in the supporting cast.
Engaging art and attention to cadence and rhythm should make for a read-aloud winner. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-61963-390-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: June 27, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable.
You think you know shapes? Animals? Blend them together, and you might see them both a little differently!
What a mischievous twist on a concept book! With wordplay and a few groan-inducing puns, Neal creates connections among animals and shapes that are both unexpected and so seemingly obvious that readers might wonder why they didn’t see them all along. Of course, a “lazy turtle” meeting an oval would create the side-splitting combo of a “SLOW-VAL.” A dramatic page turn transforms a deeply saturated, clean-lined green oval by superimposing a head and turtle shell atop, with watery blue ripples completing the illusion. Minimal backgrounds and sketchy, impressionistic detailing keep the focus right on the zany animals. Beginning with simple shapes, the geometric forms become more complicated as the book advances, taking readers from a “soaring bird” that meets a triangle to become a “FLY-ANGLE” to a “sleepy lion” nonagon “YAWN-AGON.” Its companion text, Animal Colors, delves into color theory, this time creating entirely hybrid animals, such as the “GREEN WHION” with maned head and whale’s tail made from a “blue whale and a yellow lion.” It’s a compelling way to visualize color mixing, and like Animal Shapes, it’s got verve. Who doesn’t want to shout out that a yellow kangaroo/green moose blend is a “CHARTREUSE KANGAMOOSE”?
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0534-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There is always room in the Easter basket for a counting book, and many readers may appreciate having another simple,...
A cheerful brown bunny hiding behind the edges of an Easter basket looks just as surprised as young children will be to find the chicks revealed as each egg “hatches.”
With help from a reading partner, young children are encouraged to count down the eggs as they disappear with each page turn. Alternatively, they can count up as the chicks are revealed. A simple phrase at the top of each right-hand page states the number of eggs in the basket. The line at the bottom (half of a rhyming couplet) tells how many chicks readers should look for. The numbers are spelled out, requiring young children to recognize the word instead of the more familiar numeral. On the left-hand page, the spaces previously occupied by an egg begin to fill with meadow plants and critters, eventually becoming a scene as busy and cheerful as a greeting card. This book begs to be touched. Each egg is made of shaped plastic that protrudes through die-cut holes on the verso; they can be pressed but seem to be securely anchored. The pastel chicks are lightly flocked, providing an additional tactile experience. Although the pages are thicker than paper, young fingers may find the holes a convenient way to grip (and possibly tear) the pages.
There is always room in the Easter basket for a counting book, and many readers may appreciate having another simple, nonreligious holiday book. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Jan. 27, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-545-74730-1
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
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