Cheerful fun for careful tots.
A little white mouse endeavors to make a mercurial brown bear feel happy.
Said mouse encourages readers to do something silly, sing a song, or blow bubbles to lighten the mood. A turn of the page slides vertical panels into place to change the expression on Happy Bear’s round face, visible through a circular die-cut hole, from worried or angry back to his open-mouthed grin. When the bear starts crying, the mouse wonders who can make him happy again, and, on the final page, readers see that it is the soothing presence of his mommy, who greets him with a hug. Ballesteros’ illustrations employ pleasant graphics with rounded edges and flat planes of color in muted tones, keeping the focus at all times on the main event. Publishing in October 2018, a companion book called Wake Up Santa! is also written by Thoms but is illustrated by Pintachan, who uses similarly sanguine imagery with a retro feel that harkens back to a 1950s graphic sensibility. This holiday title uses the same face-changing mechanism to show a white Santa Claus and entourage waking up to prepare for the annual Christmas Eve toy delivery. (Three elves appear to be white; one has brown skin and black hair.) While the face-changing gimmick will undoubtedly delight, it is probably best suited to the upper-end of the board-book age range, as the pages are cardstock and thinner than what is typically found in this format.
Cheerful fun for careful tots. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2474-9
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2018
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes.
A lift-the-flap book gives the littlest trick-or-treaters some practice identifying partygoers under their costumes.
Little Blue Truck and his buddy Toad are off to a party, and they invite readers (and a black cat) along for the ride: “ ‘Beep! Beep! Beep!’ / says Little Blue. / ‘It’s Halloween!’ / You come, too.” As they drive, they are surprised (and joined) by many of their friends in costume. “Who’s that in a tutu / striking a pose / up on the tiniest / tips of her toes? / Under the mask / who do you see?” Lifting the flap unmasks a friend: “ ‘Quack!’ says the duck. / ‘It’s me! It’s me!’ ” The sheep is disguised as a clown, the cow’s a queen, the pig’s a witch, the hen and her chick are pirates, and the horse is a dragon. Not to be left out, Little Blue has a costume, too. The flaps are large and sturdy, and enough of the animals’ characteristic features are visible under and around the costumes that little ones will be able to make successful guesses even on the first reading. Lovely curvy shapes and autumn colors fade to dusky blues as night falls, and children are sure to notice the traditional elements of a Halloween party: apple bobbing, lit jack-o’-lanterns, and punch and treats.
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-77253-3
Page Count: 16
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
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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
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