While there are some cute hamster antics going on here, it is an ineffective color concept book for the youngest readers.
In this follow-up to Hamsters Holding Hands (2012), a horde of hamsters introduces little ones to colors.
On the left-hand page, one, two or three hamsters express a penchant for a specific hue; they possess an odd collection of objects, everything from a bubble machine to a tire swing, in said color. On the right-hand page, the hamsters cavort among their things. Clunky verse describes the action and incorporates each color’s name; this word is printed in large, quirky bubble letters as if it were colored in by hand. Some of the objects depicted seem to have been chosen because they fit the rhyme scheme: “These little hamsters collect everything purple / They have a hoop, a wig and a dino named Durple.” As with their first outing, the critters are endearingly drawn cartoons with thick lines and goofy expressions. Design hampers the book’s effectiveness: The background color of the art, a lighter shade of the featured hue, prevents the colorful objects from standing out on the page, particularly on the “black” page, where the blackberries are almost invisible against the black background. The shade used on the “blue” page is a little too aqua and may confuse babies and toddlers learning to distinguish between blue and green.
While there are some cute hamster antics going on here, it is an ineffective color concept book for the youngest readers. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4598-0410-4
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
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A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.
One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.
It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.
A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: July 7, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Robin Corey/Random
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.
This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.
Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
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