PATRICK PAINTS A PICTURE

In this unique and extremely helpful look at colors, Pirotta tells the story of Patrick and his aunt, out in a field, painting pictures. Each double spread establishes a new color through the addition of creatures seen by the painting duo. Each time an animal is presented, Aunt Emily asks Patrick what color they will need to paint the object, then adding that color to their palette. The end of the book shows a number of color combinations and how artists can arrive at them. The chart starts with the three primary colors on top with the additions necessary to make colors such as orange, pink, purple and so on. West’s illustrations are child-friendly, jolly and colorful. The pages on the right are positively drenched in color, while the left pages that feature text use a large font for the color being introduced on each spread. This is one of those books where one wonders why it has not been done before: It is a non-didactic, festive introduction to primary colors and the colors created by combining them. A must for every library serving toddlers and teachers. (Picture book. 3-7)