Subtly packaged anti-bullying and group empowerment for small fry.
How can little fish avoid being eaten by bigger fish?
The opening double-page spread shows a pretty underwater scene rendered using what appears to be watercolor resist technique. On the verso, a large, round fish stares at a tiny clown fish on the recto and comments “Oh, look! That’s a perfect little snack for me.” The big fish looks friendly and the little one’s face lacks affect, so adults reading the book aloud to children will have to decide how sinister of a tone to adopt. A graduated series of die-cut holes in the center of each double spread means that each page turn adds layer upon layer to the visual narrative. As the story progresses, increasingly larger, open-mouthed fish appear, poised to eat the one before across the gutter, while the tiny, still expressionless clown fish hovers between them. After the opening sentence, the text takes the form of a simple refrain with a new adjective substituted on each page: “Oh no…that’s a huge fish!” and “oh no…that’s a gigantic fish!” and so on. The penultimate spread, showing a band of small clown fish coming to the aid of their beleaguered buddy, imitates a visual metaphor frequently used on grassroots-organizing posters to express the idea of unity in strength. The concluding text appropriately reinforces the message. The colorful, alluring artwork somewhat undermines the narrative by endowing each large fish with beauty and personality—despite the menacing eyes—while the tiny clown fish shows no emotion until the final page. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Subtly packaged anti-bullying and group empowerment for small fry. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-6626-5055-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: minedition
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2021
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.
This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.
Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers.
A board-book ode to parental love as old as the dinosaurs.
A line of text on the left of each spread reads like a dinosaur-themed valentine that a third grader might choose, with punishingly punny wordplay that incorporates dinosaur-related words. On the facing page a dinosaur pair—a baby and an adult—gaze lovingly into each other’s eyes against whimsical, pastel-hued prehistoric-ish backgrounds. In smaller print, in all caps, at the bottom of the left page is the scientific name for the dinosaur referenced by the text and picture followed by a helpful phonetic pronunciation guide. White-outlined footprints appear next to their names, though the white is sometimes difficult to see against the pastel pages. Ten of the best-known dinosaurs are included. Twisting the dinosaur names to fit the loving sentiments succeeds some of the time but more often results in tortured text, well beyond the understanding of the board book audience. The line accompanying two hugging velociraptors, for instance, is just confusing: “Wrap-TOR arms around me, / with you I’ll always stay.” Others are just plain clumsy: “I-wanna-GUANODON you kisses, / I truly just adore you.” Very young children, even those fascinated by dinosaurs, will not get it. Older dinosaur fans will be put off by the babyish format.
Not a great choice for the youngest dinosaur lovers. (Board book. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2295-0
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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