While the writing is not as whimsical as in predecessors Cuddly Cow and Higgly Hen (both 2017), the prospect of pushing...
Portly Pig is much too clean and searches for the perfect muddy pool.
He soon discovers a good patch in the corner of a field and makes himself sufficiently dirty. When a brief rainstorm washes him clean, he quickly heads back to this new favorite spot to muck himself up all over again. While the story is slight, the key attraction is the large blue button/speaker on the cover that’s accessible on every page through a die-cut circle. When pushed, it activates a sound chip that produces realistic pig grunts and barnyard bird song. Scheffler uses richly colored gouache and a bold black outline to create playful and expressive farm critters, all with the artist’s signature circular, bulgy eyes. Each one-page scene is paired with a quatrain on a solid background on the opposite page to relay the simple tale. In the companion title, Gobbly Goat, the title character searches for something yummy to eat until he spies a bowl of strawberries and cream inside a farmhouse. He promptly breaks in, devours the treat, and eats the flowers in a vase as well. This offering in the series also employs a large button that bleats realistically when pushed. A button battery is secured behind a plastic panel in the back cover and can be accessed or replaced only with a tiny Phillips screwdriver.
While the writing is not as whimsical as in predecessors Cuddly Cow and Higgly Hen (both 2017), the prospect of pushing buttons will make this a toddler crowd pleaser. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9621-4
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: Jan. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead.
An Easter-themed board-book parody of the traditional nursery rhyme.
Unfortunately, this effort is just as sugary and uninspired as The Itsy Bitsy Snowman, offered by the same pair in 2015. A cheerful white bunny hops through a pastel world to distribute candy and treats for Easter but spills his baskets. A hedgehog, fox, mouse, and various birds come to the bunny’s rescue, retrieving the candy, helping to devise a distribution plan, and hiding the eggs. Then magically, they all fly off in a hot air balloon as the little animals in the village emerge to find the treats. Without any apparent purpose, the type changes color to highlight some words. For very young children every word is new, so highlighting “tiny tail” or “friends” makes no sense. Although the text is meant to be sung, the words don't quite fit the rhythm of the original song. Moreover, there are not clear motions to accompany the text; without the fingerplay movements, this book has none of the satisfying verve of the traditional version.
Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-5621-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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