The minor flaw in the construction makes this a nonessential purchase for all but the most dino-happy tots
The combination of hide-and-seek and sliders to manipulate with fanciful dinosaurs should guarantee an audience for this board book.
Beginning with the front cover, a smiling green dinosaur is hiding in plain sight in every picture: in a window, behind a sofa, in the shower, in bed, in the freezer. On each page the titular refrain is repeated, followed by a question that hints at where the dinosaur will be found. It doesn’t hurt success that the dinosaur doesn’t really fit in its hiding places. Toddlers will quickly find the clearly marked slider that confirms their guess, sliding the head of one out from behind the sofa or pulling back the shower curtain to reveal another. The book ends with a final affirmation: “I knew I saw a dinosaur. There it is!” The slider on that page makes the dinosaur’s head nod up and down. The format is repeated in the companion volume, I Thought I Saw a Lion, with the lion hiding in a restaurant, costume shop, library, and beauty shop. Digitally produced drawings in a retro palette are reminiscent of mid-20th-century printmaking and folk art. Except for a brown-skinned waiter and a brown-skinned customer getting her straight brown hair cut in the beauty parlor in Lion, the people in both books are white. Unfortunately, the sliders have a tendency to become quite loose after repeat readings and slide when the book is merely tilted.
The minor flaw in the construction makes this a nonessential purchase for all but the most dino-happy tots . (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9945-1
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Templar/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet but not essential book.
A whole host of children presents a whole host of balls in this new installment in the Baby Unplugged series.
There are so many kinds of balls in this little board book. Big ball, shiny ball, game ball, plain ball, spot ball. And not all are necessarily balls. Some are round objects, like the snowball and the clay ball or the blueberry that is a “tiny ball.” Some balls are verb balls, like the “throw ball, / catch ball, / go ball, / fetch ball!” There is even a gotcha! ball that’s “not ball”—it’s a cube! And all these balls are being played with by an equally eclectic group of children. African-American, Asian, brown-skinned, and blond and brunette white children are all represented here in illustrations that are charming and clear but not particularly artful. It feels as though both author and illustrator are trying so hard to include so much that they’ve almost forgotten to have fun. It’s reminiscent of One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish but without the spark that turns an OK book into a timeless classic. Best suited for young children who are already quite verbal.
A sweet but not essential book. (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: April 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-936669-42-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: blue manatee press
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
A terrific resource for fans of Daniel Tiger and newcomers alike.
Animated PBS character Daniel Tiger helps readers tell time.
Mr. Rogers–like (explicitly—the show is produced by the Fred Rogers Co.), Daniel Tiger welcomes his neighbors, inviting them to spend the day with him and learn to use a clock along the way. A large clock face with movable hands is accessible through a large, die-cut circle in the upper-right corner of each double-page spread. The hands click and clack as they’re moved around the clock’s face, and the sound is peculiarly satisfying. Each hand has a different noise, helping children to differentiate between the two. Daniel and his family and friends do lots of things throughout the day, including eating breakfast, going to school, running errands, eating dinner, and going to bed. The illustrations emulate the show’s rounded, calmly colored style. Fans of the television show will be entranced. Daniel’s constant engagement with readers will spawn busy interaction, and the fact that this book covers a whole day makes it an excellent read right before bed.
A terrific resource for fans of Daniel Tiger and newcomers alike. (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6934-0
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Simon Spotlight
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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