This series is not for novice singers of these classic songs nor those new to ASL, but the experienced should find them a...
Toddlers act out the classic song using American Sign Language.
Accompanied by a collection of toy buses, the youngsters on each double-page spread share one or two lines of “The Wheels on the Bus” and demonstrate the signs for key words (wheel, bus, wipers, etc.). Small italicized captions label them, and directional arrows provide guidance for performing the signs, but those learning ASL would be hard-pressed to learn these signs from the artwork alone. In an inviting Helen Oxenbury–like style, the little ones are drawn as simple cartoons in what looks like charcoal followed by a watercolor wash of muted and bold hues. Only the complete first verse is shared on the opening pages, and partial stanzas are included thereafter as a space-saving device. Also in the series, Old Macdonald (978-1-84643-628-4) follows a similar format, with little ones sharing the signs and lyrics of the song surrounded by toys relating to the verse in question. On the last double-page spread, the toddlers sign the letters in “Ee I Ee I O!” Though they have equally appealing art, the three final books in the series have some flaws. Some of the captions for the signs are missing from Humpty Dumpty (978-1-84643-627-7). The action depicted here, of a tyke falling off a pillow “wall” and rescuers in dress-up clothes appearing on the scene, is nearly identical to the antics of another Child’s Play version of the rhyme illustrated by Annie Kubler (2010, 978-1-84643-339-9). In Jack and Jill (978-1-84643-69-1), a little girl shares the sign for “house” when the word for “home” appears within the text in the song’s little-known second verse. A similar gang of young children act out the story of Five Little Ducks (978-1-84643-630-7) in this series’ version of the song instead of ducks, which concrete learners may find confusing.
This series is not for novice singers of these classic songs nor those new to ASL, but the experienced should find them a delightful tool to aid singing and signing. (Board book. 6-18 mos.)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-84643-626-0
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Child's Play
Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.
Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.
This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.
Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-544-93809-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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