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FIRST WORDS

Name: FIRST WORDS
Author: Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 978-0-545-90330-1

From the Scholastic Early Learners: My First 100 Touch and Lift series

by Scholastic Inc. ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 30, 2016

While an admirable effort to give toddlers what they love, this and its companions are overly busy and prove that less is...

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In this primer of common words for toddlers to learn, there are flaps to lift, textures to feel, and photos to name.

Each double-page spread focuses on a certain domain of a young child’s experiences and includes “Family,” “My Body,” “Food and Drink,” “Out and About,” and “Colors and Shapes.” The layout design repeats across the project, which includes eight flaps with photographs on the outer and inner flaps with a one-word caption and a larger image on the recto and a small textural element embedded inside. While the clear photos are an excellent choice for the very young, the flaps are on the small side for little ones still developing motor skills, as are most of the images and the textures. Some of the images above and below the flaps relate or are opposites (plane/sky and black/white); others come across as haphazardly connected (glasses/knee). The companion titles in the series follow the same formula. First 100 Things That Go divides vehicles up into very loose categories (planes with snow vehicles?), but the range of conveyances is impressive, from inner tube to space station. The groupings in First 100 Animals are a bit more cohesive, but the connections between the images on the outer and inner flaps are opaque in most cases except for the names of the grown-up and corresponding baby critters (sheep/lamb) on the farm-animal spread. The tot-sized handle at the top of each book will likely be a hit with this demographic.

While an admirable effort to give toddlers what they love, this and its companions are overly busy and prove that less is more with young children. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-545-90330-1

Page Count: 12

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

- BOOK REVIEW
ORIENTATION NOTEBOOK
by Scholastic Inc.

- BOOK REVIEW
LET'S GO, CONSTRUCTION TRUCKS!
by Scholastic Inc.

- BOOK REVIEW
LOOK WHO'S MOOING!
by Scholastic Inc.

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SMILE, POUT-POUT FISH

by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 7, 2014

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.

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This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.

Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8

Page Count: 12

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORRY-WORRY WHALE AND THE CLASSROOM JITTERS
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

- BOOK REVIEW
POUT-POUT FISH
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

- BOOK REVIEW
THE POUT-POUT FISH AND THE MAD, MAD DAY
by Deborah Diesen ; illustrated by Dan Hanna

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ALL ABOUT ME

From the Look & Learn series

by National Geographic ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 11, 2014

Clear nonfiction for the very young is hard to come by, and it appears that the Look & Learn series may finally be on...

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An exploration of the human body through colorful photos.

Every other double-page spread labels the individual parts on one major area: head, torso, back, arm and leg. Ethnically diverse boy-girl pairs serve as models as arrows point to specific features and captions float nearby. While the book usefully mentions rarely depicted body parts, such as eyebrow, armpit and shin, some of the directional arrows are unclear. The arrow pointing at a girl’s shoulder hits her in the upper arm, and the belly button is hard is distinguish from the stomach (both are concealed by shirts). Facts about the human body (“Guess what? You have tiny hairs in your nose that keep out dirt”) appear on alternating spreads along with photos of kids in action. Baby Animals, another title in the Look & Learn series, uses an identical format to introduce readers to seal pups, leopard cubs, elephant calves, ducklings and tadpoles. In both titles, the final spread offers a review of the information and encourages readers to match baby animals to their parents or find body parts on a photo of kids jumping on a trampoline.

Clear nonfiction for the very young is hard to come by, and it appears that the Look & Learn series may finally be on the right track despite earlier titles that were much too conceptual for the audience. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)