Utterly irresistible.
Two babies, two lives, and a special day of shared greetings and friendships.
“Somewhere / in the big, big city / across a beep-beep street / along two bumpy sidewalks” live this baby and that baby, who greet each other from opposite-facing apartment windows. This baby has deep brown skin and “a lot of curly black hair,” similar to his Mama’s. That baby has beige skin and straight dark hair, similar to her Papa’s. Together the babies lead boisterous, bouncy lives in which they eat (definitely!), nap (eventually!), and play (always!). Their loving, watchful single parents take them on a walk through the neighborhood to a playdate at the park, in a spread designed like a map that invites readers to follow their adventures. Lending itself to multiple readings, Best’s effervescent text captures the peppy rhythms on each detail-packed spread, often split between this baby’s experience (on the left page) and that baby’s (on the right). Using a classic throwback palette of muted reds and blues, set against a cream background, Kheiriyeh’s illustrations are endearingly hilarious (especially a spread on which Papa seems aggrieved at the frequency with which he needs to change his little one’s diaper). The parallel lives of these two families reverberate with a sense of community and camaraderie desperately needed in today’s divided world, accompanied by a soundtrack of giggles, wails, and banging drums.
Utterly irresistible. (Picture book. 1-4)Pub Date: Feb. 27, 2024
ISBN: 9780593564639
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Anne Schwartz/Random
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Wonderful, indeed
A love song to baby with delightful illustrations to boot.
Sweet but not saccharine and singsong but not forced, Martin’s text is one that will invite rereadings as it affirms parental wishes for children while admirably keeping child readers at its heart. The lines that read “This is the first time / There’s ever been you, / So I wonder what wonderful things / You will do” capture the essence of the picture book and are accompanied by a diverse group of babies and toddlers clad in downright adorable outfits. Other spreads include older kids, too, and pictures expand on the open text to visually interpret the myriad possibilities and hopes for the depicted children. For example, a spread reading “Will you learn how to fly / To find the best view?” shows a bespectacled, school-aged girl on a swing soaring through an empty white background. This is just one spread in which Martin’s fearless embrace of the white of the page serves her well. Throughout the book, she maintains a keen balance of layout choices, and surprising details—zebras on the wallpaper behind a father cradling his child, a rock-’n’-roll band of mice paralleling the children’s own band called “The Missing Teeth”—add visual interest and gentle humor. An ideal title for the baby-shower gift bag and for any nursery bookshelf or lap-sit storytime.
Wonderful, indeed . (Picture book. 1-4)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-385-37671-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2015
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires.
Little Blue Truck feels, well, blue when he delivers valentine after valentine but receives nary a one.
His bed overflowing with cards, Blue sets out to deliver a yellow card with purple polka dots and a shiny purple heart to Hen, one with a shiny fuchsia heart to Pig, a big, shiny, red heart-shaped card to Horse, and so on. With each delivery there is an exchange of Beeps from Blue and the appropriate animal sounds from his friends, Blue’s Beeps always set in blue and the animal’s vocalization in a color that matches the card it receives. But as Blue heads home, his deliveries complete, his headlight eyes are sad and his front bumper droops ever so slightly. Blue is therefore surprised (but readers may not be) when he pulls into his garage to be greeted by all his friends with a shiny blue valentine just for him. In this, Blue’s seventh outing, it’s not just the sturdy protagonist that seems to be wilting. Schertle’s verse, usually reliable, stumbles more than once; stanzas such as “But Valentine’s Day / didn’t seem much fun / when he didn’t get cards / from anyone” will cause hitches during read-alouds. The illustrations, done by Joseph in the style of original series collaborator Jill McElmurry, are pleasant enough, but his compositions often feel stiff and forced.
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Dec. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-358-27244-1
Page Count: 20
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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