Textured collages invite preschoolers to consider the sense of touch. In this Growing Tree entry, Becker uses simple rhymes to describe the feel of different creatures. "Tickly prickly. Fly away quickly," she says of a ladybug, while a toad feels "Muddy, bumpy. Warty, lumpy." Illustrations of the fuzzy wool of a sheep, smudgy wings of a moth, and opalescent scales of a fish all appear enticingly tactile, due to Halpern's astute use of unusual paper in the collages.
Pub Date: June 30, 1999
ISBN: 0-694-01239-4
Page Count: 26
Publisher: HarperFestival
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
1882
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-689-82979-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1999
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
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