Beautifully illustrated but disappointingly homogeneous. (Board book. 2-5)
It’s winter in Bustletown, and there’s so much to see.
Each two-page spread of this oversized, wordless board book features a different area of Bustletown, including the train station, a local farm, and downtown. The scenes depict characters of all ages, such as baby Francis, who is tucked into a stroller; elementary-age Lena and Lisa; and gray-haired Anne, who has missed the bus. The scenes often present cutaways of buildings, such that readers can see the activity inside, not to mention the various birds and animals climbing across roofs and trees. The illustrations are detailed without overwhelming preschoolers, and the clever repetition of key characters (identified on the back) on each set of pages allows readers to weave together multiple, simultaneous narratives as the book progresses. Although some of these characters are pictured with dark skin and dark hair, most of them appear to be white. One of the few exceptions, a South American named Pedro who finds Bustletown “pretty cold,” wears stereotypical dress and does little more than tote a guitar around town. Furthermore, the book exclusively features Western, Christian iconography, including a prominently placed town church, a Christmas tree displayed at the cultural center, and what appears to be a Christmas market downtown. The lack of diverse main characters and religious traditions flattens an otherwise interesting book.
Beautifully illustrated but disappointingly homogeneous. (Board book. 2-5)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-3-7913-7415-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Prestel
Review Posted Online: Aug. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
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
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
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