A little girl finds brightly colored animals playing in a jungle tree in this peek-through-the-hole board book.
A pale-skinned girl in a green dress spies something blue as she leaves her tree swing. “What could it be?” The work’s round hole reveals a few blue morpho butterflies, and a page turn shows a swarm of them fluttering around the happy girl. As she returns to her swing, she spots something red. Through the hole, a red bird (a scarlet macaw) is clearly visible, but the page turn reveals four of them, one of which has landed on the girl’s arm. Now with butterflies and macaws swinging with her, the girl notices two green frogs, and several green amphibians join their game, followed by “orange monkeys” and “brown kitties” (presumably black jaguar cubs, given that all the other animals in the book are South American). But when the girl picks up one of the cubs (“Play with me!”), the mother jaguar gives a loud roar and the swing breaks. The girl looks unafraid, however, and despite climbing vines to avoid further angering the adult jaguar, she and her animal friends all end up high in the tree branches as a single community. The South American setting lends itself well to illustrator Vigovszky’s gorgeous colors and the concept-book aspect of Craig’s (Oh So Quiet, 2016, etc.) rhyming text. But presenting most of the animals at ground level rather than in the canopy or higher may misrepresent rain forest ecosystems to the youngest readers. That quibble aside, the peeking holes should delight lap readers, especially toddlers, who are sure to love picking out the colors and the animals with their parents. The girl’s expressions are full of sheer fun, and her smiles are infectious. Craig’s rhymes are as rhythmic and well-designed as ever, repeating phrases to help youngsters begin to read or chime in with parents. The vocabulary proves very accessible, with the author’s choices ideal for learning to match colors and animals.
A clever tale full of vibrant rain forest creatures that toddlers should certainly enjoy.
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-9967212-3-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlbop Publishing
Review Posted Online: Dec. 9, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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
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