For armchair travelers newly or not yet out of diapers, Maisy again serves as a safe and comfortably familiar companion with...
Maisy meets smiling animals in habitats from jungle to ocean in her newest First Science Book.
The tour starts in the Arctic, where, with a pull of a large tab, a polar bear yanks a herring out of the water (to the relief, no doubt, of the several onlooking seals), and ends in the Antarctic, where penguins dive for food and lift wings to reveal a chick and an egg. In between, Maisy watches or greets wildlife found in six other world climes. Except for an ostrich on the savanna and an octopus and other denizens of the ocean, the animals on each spread save the last are identified in visual sidebar keys. Throughout, the accompanying narrative offers morsels of background information like “Maisy is very hot in the savanna,” or “Look at all the sand in the desert.” Aside from a double gatefold in the middle that opens to reveal a blue whale, the typically inviting but fragile interactive effects are driven by a pull tab on each recto. They cause meerkats to pop up, a lion to slide out of the tall grass, Maisy and a monkey to swing past one another in the jungle, and other gratifying events.
For armchair travelers newly or not yet out of diapers, Maisy again serves as a safe and comfortably familiar companion with whom to explore the wider world. (Pop-up informational picture book. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6989-8
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
The small size, a predictable winter adventure, and Boynton’s very toddlerlike character make this a fine stocking stuffer...
Seven years after Little Pookie (2011) first appeared, this popular piglet is finally celebrating Christmas.
“Oh Pookie! Come look! It’s beginning to snow,” says a maternal-looking pig. But where did Pookie go? Past the Christmas tree, to put on a snowsuit of course. Pookie’s ever cheerful mama is willing to go out too. After all, “It’s a magical time to be walking with you.” When she observes, “Our noses are frozen. It’s time to go in,” Pookie protests in typical toddler style: “But I’m not c-c-c-cold!” The next three pages highlight indoor holiday preparations—making paper garlands, baking and decorating cookies. The rhyming text mirrors the spare illustrations. A spidery type that emulates handwriting makes it clear when Pookie is speaking. Then “the doorbell is ringing. / Our family and friends have arrived for the singing.” The second-to-last spread shows Pookie, mama, and six other pigs—and Boynton’s requisite chicken—singing (“Con brio”), “MER-RY CHRIST-MAS! MER-RY CHRIST-MAS! AND A HAP-PY NEW YEAR!” Conveniently, this text is placed beneath the musical notation. Finally Pookie hangs a stocking and goes off to bed without any fuss, anticipating presents on Christmas morning.
The small size, a predictable winter adventure, and Boynton’s very toddlerlike character make this a fine stocking stuffer or an ideal Christmas Eve read to share with other little piggies. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3724-1
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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