Quaint independent learning.
How can a puppy fit blocks together to make a place to nap?
Harris and Chatterton team up for another “Math Tale” (CRASH! BOOM!, 2018) in this shapes primer for young readers who’ve graduated from board books. An orange puppy with black ears and white paws has a bag full of wooden blocks. The pup counts and identifies each block, then arranges them through trial and error until there’s a platform big enough to lie on with a blanket and teddy bear. The repetitive text keeps a steady pace and includes exhortations to “Look!” and count the “1. 2. 3. 4 corners” of a rectangle, encouraging reader engagement. The content pushes understanding beyond the basics, noting, for example, how every side of a rectangle block is also rectangular. Sometimes the phrasing can be confusing, as when the puppy examines a new shape and exclaims, “Oh. This is a rectangle that’s square!”—but such moments could be opportunities for young readers to make discoveries of their own in the moment or during a reread. The digitally colored pencil illustrations with some photographic elements are dear, with an appropriate level of simplicity and lots of negative space in its white, pastel blue, or yellow backgrounds. The puppy’s soft curves and spots provide a distinctive visual counter to the beveled edges of the blocks.
Quaint independent learning. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-7636-7828-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree.
A Christmas edition of the beloved alphabet book.
The story starts off nearly identically to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989), written by John Archambault and the late Bill Martin Jr, with the letters A, B, and C deciding to meet in the branches of a tree. This time, they’re attempting to scale a Christmas tree, not a coconut tree, and the letters are strung together like garland. A, B, and C are joined by the other letters, and of course they all “slip, slop, topple, plop!” right down the tree. At the bottom, they discover an assortment of gifts, all in a variety of shapes. As a team, the letters and presents organize themselves to get back up on the Christmas tree and get a star to the top. Holiday iterations of favorite tales often fall flat, but this take succeeds. The gifts are an easy way to reinforce another preschool concept—shapes—and the text uses just enough of the original to be familiar. The rhyming works, sticking to the cadence of the source material. The illustrations pay homage to the late Lois Ehlert’s, featuring the same bold block letters, though they lack some of the whimsy and personality of the original. Otherwise, everything is similarly brightly colored and simply drawn. Those familiar with the classic will be drawn to this one, but newcomers can enjoy it on its own.
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665954761
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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
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