Neither the picture-book medium nor the Numberlys app is as well-served as each deserves.
A successful app makes a transition to print.
Joyce and Ellis’ Moonbot Studios fable about an evolution in thinking loses something in the translation from tablet to print, despite its 50-plus–page length. A vast, somber art deco metropolis rendered in straight lines and monochromatic grays and browns houses a world of numbers and gears: “[E]verything added up.” Five little beings, sporting round eyes and round heads (some with antennae), want “MORE.” They design and manufacture a familiar, Western alphabet from the forms of numbers. Upon completion of the Z, the letters, bright with color, form the words of new, appealing ideas (“jellybeans,” “yellow,” “pizza”), even names. Numbers disappear altogether; the world transforms to full color. Young readers—and significant adults—frequently look for books to extend screen-based story experiences. The opportunity to look more closely at the Numberlys’ world is definitely an attraction. But the visual richness isn’t matched by the insubstantial plot, and suggesting that numbers aren’t beautiful or that the sole source of color and fun is our alphabet seems trite and misguided. Much of the book requires turning pages vertically as if opening a calendar, matching the tall cityscape but making shared reading awkward.
Neither the picture-book medium nor the Numberlys app is as well-served as each deserves. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7343-0
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2014
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Unusual illustrations enhance an engaging, informative narrative.
What can a worm do?
A little worm sets off on a “twirl” to “see the world.” But when it overhears a human referring to it as “just a worm,” its feelings are hurt. The worm asks other critters—including a caterpillar, a spider, a dragonfly—what they can do. After each answer (turn into a butterfly, spin silk thread, fly), the worm becomes more and more dejected because it can’t do any of these things. “Maybe I am just a worm.” But then the worm encounters a ladybug, who eats aphids and other insects, and the worm realizes that it eats dead plants and animals and keeps gardens clean. And though the worm can’t pollinate like the bee, it does create castings (poop) that help plants grow and stay healthy. These abilities, the worm realizes in triumph, are important! The cleverness of this story lies in its lighthearted, effective dissemination of information about various insects as well as earthworms. It doesn’t hurt that the expressive little worm is downright adorable, with emotions that will resonate with anyone who has felt unimportant. The stunning illustrations are done in quilled paper—a centuries-old technique that involves assembling strips of colored paper into shapes—which adds sparkle and originality. A tutorial of how to make a quilled butterfly and a page on earthworm facts round out the book. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Unusual illustrations enhance an engaging, informative narrative. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 14, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-06-321256-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
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