This ballgame is a board-book miss.
The novelty-book answer to the basketball net on the wastepaper basket.
On the paperboard overwrap that holds this accordion-fold board book together, players are invited to “screw a piece of paper into a ball” and flick it, throw it or shoot it with a rubber band through holes in the book. One side of the book contains various cartoon scenes of sporting events involving balls: basketball, soccer, rugby, tennis and golf. The colorful verso lists numeric point values. A few of the targets will be manageable for young players, but the others (the smallest hole is less than one-half inch in diameter) will prove frustratingly impossible. The companion title, The Game of Mirrors, is also wordless and uses shiny silver pages, a variety of geometric forms and several die-cut holes punched through the center to create a mesmerizing visual experience. Both titles contain the choking-hazard label that has beset many of the other books in the series. While a detachable piece from The Ball Game is likely to blame for this warning, it is quite baffling what the small parts are on The Game of Mirrors, as there are none to be found. While The Ball Game really is most appropriate for children above 3 years since significant coordination is needed, it is too bad Tullet’s American publishers could not find a way to make The Game of Mirrors safe for core board-book readers; babies would have been the perfect audience for this playful exploration.
This ballgame is a board-book miss. (Board book. 3-8)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7148-6688-8
Page Count: 8
Publisher: Phaidon
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2014
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
A nice but not requisite purchase.
A retelling of the classic fairy tale in board-book format and with a Mexican setting.
Though simplified for a younger audience, the text still relates the well-known tale: mean-spirited stepmother, spoiled stepsisters, overworked Cinderella, fairy godmother, glass slipper, charming prince, and, of course, happily-ever-after. What gives this book its flavor is the artwork. Within its Mexican setting, the characters are olive-skinned and dark-haired. Cultural references abound, as when a messenger comes carrying a banner announcing a “FIESTA” in beautiful papel picado. Cinderella is the picture of beauty, with her hair up in ribbons and flowers and her typically Mexican many-layered white dress. The companion volume, Snow White, set in Japan and illustrated by Misa Saburi, follows the same format. The simplified text tells the story of the beautiful princess sent to the forest by her wicked stepmother to be “done away with,” the dwarves that take her in, and, eventually, the happily-ever-after ending. Here too, what gives the book its flavor is the artwork. The characters wear traditional clothing, and the dwarves’ house has the requisite shoji screens, tatami mats and cherry blossoms in the garden. The puzzling question is, why the board-book presentation? Though the text is simplified, it’s still beyond the board-book audience, and the illustrations deserve full-size books.
A nice but not requisite purchase. (Board book/fairy tale. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7915-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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