Not a timeless classic but a sturdy introduction to the holiday fun.
Another board book designed to prime toddlers for Santa's annual appearance.
Roly Poly, a white bear clad in a holiday sweater, is looking for Santa, in the yard, in the house, and in the kitchen. In the process, he finds his animal friends getting ready for the holiday. In a nod to many families’ reality, the presents are already under the tree when Roly Poly's parents send him off to bed; Santa delivers only the filled Christmas stocking. Each of the four large, semicircular tabs protruding from the side and top of the book does double duty. For example, Deer is on one side of the second tab, which, when pulled, reveals Fox in a die-cut window; when the page is turned, the same tab shows Giraffe, and Cat appears when the tab is slid. The illustrations, cheery, digitally created cartoons, have no relation to real life. Why would a dog and a mouse be baking cookies together? But that won't matter to toddlers, who want to tug on the pages of any book. The half-circle tabs will stand up to their rough handling. The die-cut openings are almost flush to the page surface, so toddler fingers won't be able to tear them.
Not a timeless classic but a sturdy introduction to the holiday fun. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-8938-4
Page Count: 8
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
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BOOK REVIEW
A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.
One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.
It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.
A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: July 7, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Robin Corey/Random
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 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
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BOOK REVIEW
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