This book showcases the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and will delight and engage resident and nonlocal toddlers alike.
Following Hello Humpback! (2017), Budd and First Nations artist Vickers (Tsimshian, Haida, and Heiltsuk) are back, this time counting up from one to 10.
Vickers offers vivid illustrations of West Coast animals in their natural habitats along with traditional Pacific Northwest Indigenous motifs. Each number is presented on one double-page spread, except for seven swans and eight robins, presented together. Each line of the rhyming text begins with the written number and animal shown on that page, printed in raised glossy black uppercase letters; the rest of the sentence is in cursive lowercase letters. Corresponding numerals are printed in the corners. “FIVE SEA LIONS like it sunny // SIX BEARS hunt for honey.” Many of the animals are also presented in raised glossy illustrations with vivid colors. The Indigenous motifs are often subtly incorporated, as with two glossy all-black herons embossed against matte black backgrounds. Every turn of the page brings a new, dramatic landscape that showcases these animals. Although not all the animals in the book are specifically iconic to the Pacific Northwest, the tactile raised elements and the Indigenous motifs add a unique and important component to the enjoyment of this book.
This book showcases the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and will delight and engage resident and nonlocal toddlers alike. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-55017-828-9
Page Count: 20
Publisher: Harbour Publishing
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday.
Animal parents declare their love for their offspring in alphabetical order.
Each page displays an enormous capital letter, one line of verse with the keyword capitalized, and a loving nonhuman parent gazing adoringly at their baby. “A is for Always. I always love you more. / B is for Butterfly kisses. It’s you that I adore.” While not named or labelled as such, the A is also for an alligator and its hatchling and B is for a butterfly and a butterfly child (not a caterpillar—biology is not the aim of this title) interacting in some way with the said letter. For E there are an elephant and a calf; U features a unicorn and foal; and X, keyed to the last letter of the animal’s name, corresponds to a fox and three pups. The final double-page spread shows all the featured creatures and their babies as the last line declares: “Baby, I love you from A to Z!” The verse is standard fare and appropriately sentimental. The art is cartoony-cute and populated by suitably loving critters on solid backgrounds. Hearts accent each scene, but the theme of the project is never in any doubt.
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2095-6
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
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
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