Sure to provoke conversation, a fresh approach to looking, and multiple readings.
As they did in Before After (2014), Arégui and Ramstein invite viewers to investigate concepts by moving back and forth through their colorful, dynamic world.
The large-format, wordless book begins with the cross section of an enormous egg and the yellow duckling cramped inside. On the recto opposite, a mother and tiny purple offspring watch the still-unhatched oval. Next a spelunker descends into an amethyst mine; the facing page shows the holder of the rope at the surface. Each digital pairing offers plenty to ponder: What will happen when that duckling, larger and a different color than its siblings, emerges? Is that Rapunzel swimming across a pond? Is that little gray bird on the outside of the fence that pens in the parrots? Some scenes take more time than others to decipher, but the book’s creators have skillfully employed scale and color to guide careful seekers. Other images are unexpected: A figure in a tent, building a fire, is revealed to be inside a now-smoking whale; a vibrating heart precedes a bungee jumper. It is the distinct shapes of the amethysts in the final spreads that trigger recall and propel readers back to the beginning. The older gentleman at the window has a collection of objects and paintings that beg to be connected (to each spread?), adding another level of challenge. (He presents white, but other humans display diverse skin colors.)
Sure to provoke conversation, a fresh approach to looking, and multiple readings. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: April 9, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5362-0597-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Candlewick Studio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
A bit predictable but pleasantly illustrated.
Bill Martin Jr and John Archambault’s classic alphabet book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989) gets the Halloween treatment.
Chung follows the original formula to the letter. In alphabetical order, each letter climbs to the top of a tree. They are knocked back to the ground in a jumble before climbing up in sequence again. In homage to the spooky holiday theme, they scale a “creaky old tree,” and a ghostly jump scare causes the pileup. The chunky, colorful art is instantly recognizable. The charmingly costumed letters (“H swings a tail. / I wears a patch. J and K don / bows that don’t match”) are set against a dark backdrop, framed by pages with orange or purple borders. The spreads feature spiderwebs and jack-o’-lanterns. The familiar rhyme cadence is marred by the occasional clunky or awkward phrase; in particular, the adapted refrain of “Chicka chicka tricka treat” offers tongue-twisting fun, but it’s repeatedly followed by the disappointing half-rhyme “Everybody sneaka sneak.” Even this odd construction feels shoehorned into place, since “sneaking” makes little sense when every character in the book is climbing together. The final line of the book ends on a more satisfying note, with “Everybody—time to eat!”
A bit predictable but pleasantly illustrated. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: July 15, 2025
ISBN: 9781665954785
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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
BOOK REVIEW
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