A how-to for adults that they can share with children.
In rhyming text this bilingual (Spanish/English) book details the pleasures children and adults will find reading together from birth through the rest of childhood.
Gentle illustrations that combine the looks of print and collage depict a pregnant Black mother preparing for the arrival of her baby by making a bookcase out of old shoeboxes. “I’ll build you a bookcase before you are born / that’s made out of boxes from shoes that were worn.” In the next double-page spread, two White dads describe the kinds of books that will go in the bookcase for their infant child: “for books we will read in the soft morning light / and books we will read before saying good night.” Each new double-page spread shows a different set of adults and children: a multiracial family, a Muslim mother and child; Black, White, brown, and Asian adults and children; old and young people; and a child in a wheelchair. And each spread details the wondrous worlds books will open up: “We’ll learn about bluebirds that live in a tree / and giant green turtles that nest near the sea.” There’s also a clear message aimed at adults: “I’ll build you a bookcase for when you turn 2, / my phone tucked away so it’s just me and you.” Backmatter tips on reading with children reemphasize the text’s message. The Spanish translation, done by Canetti, captures the mood and the rhythm of the original English text.
A how-to for adults that they can share with children. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64379-454-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Lee & Low Books
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
Nothing riveting but serviceable enough.
Children are introduced to the concepts of sorting and classifying in this bedtime story.
It is getting close to bedtime, and Marco’s mother asks him to put his toys away. Marco—who thinks of himself as a scientist—corrects her: “You mean time to sort the animals.” And that’s what he proceeds to do. Marco sorts his animals into three baskets labeled “Flying Animals,” “Swimming Animals,” and “Animals That Move on Land,” but the animals will not sleep. So he sorts them by color: “Mostly Brown,” “Black and White,” and “Colors of the Rainbow,” but Zebra is upset to be separated from Giraffe. Next, Marco sorts his animals by size: “Small,” “Medium,” and “Large,” but the big animals are cramped and the small ones feel cold. Finally, Marco ranges them around his bed from biggest to smallest, thus providing them with space to move and helping them to feel safe. Everyone satisfied, they all go to sleep. While the plot is flimsy, the general idea that organizing and classifying can be accomplished in many different ways is clear. Young children are also presented with the concept that different classifications can lead to different results. The illustrations, while static, keep the focus clearly on the sorting taking place. Marco and his mother have brown skin. The backmatter includes an explanation of sorting in science and ideas for further activities.
Nothing riveting but serviceable enough. (Math picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-62354-128-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
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