Board Books ages 9 months-6 years
Helen Oxenbury's Little Baby Books written and illustrated by
Helen Oxenbury
Teddies & Trucks/Teddies & Machines written and photographed by
Suzanne Haldane and Maude Salinger
Good Night, Baby/Wide Awake! written and illustrated by Clara Vulliamy
Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat by Gene Baer. Illustrated by Lois Ehlert
The Snowy Day written and illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats
NOTES FROM THE WINDOWSILL ISSN 1078-8697
An electronic journal of book reviews. Copyright 1996 Wendy E. Betts.
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Vol. 4, No. 7c Board Books, ages 9 months-6 years 7/19/96
__ Helen Oxenbury's Little Baby Books_ written and illustrated by Helen
Oxenbury. Candlewick, 1996 (1-56402-691-4) $5.99
Four of Oxenbury's popular baby books--_I Hear_, _I See_, _I Touch_ and
_I Can_--are included in miniature format in this boxed set. Each small
book includes simple vocabulary words, accompanied by pen & ink and
watercolor illustrations with Oxenbury's trademark clean lines and
uncluttered backgrounds. All the books stress activity and
participation: we see a "ball," and then a toddler rolling on it, a
"cat" and a toddler stroking it, and so on. Perhaps the nicest
combination is the crying "baby" who becomes all smiles when the
toddler plays with her. (9 months-2 years)
__ Teddies & Trucks_ and _Teddies & Machines_ written and photographed
by Suzanne Haldane and Maude Salinger. Dutton, 1996 (0-525-45400-4;
0-525-45401-2) $3.99 each
Combining two favorite childhood icons, these books of photos show
small teddy bears at work with big toy trucks. The text is simply the
names of the machines: scrapper, tractor and so on. Wearing little
hard hats, the teddies are very cute. (9 months-3 years)
__ Good Night, Baby_ and _Wide Awake!_ written and illustrated by Clara
Vulliamy. Candlewick, 1996 (1-56402-817-8; 1-56402-816-X) $4.99 each
These rhyming books take a toddler through the everyday activities of
morning and night. At night it's "messy dinner cleared away, toys
packed up for another day." In the morning it's "jumping on mom who's
still half asleep, waking up dad with a tune--peep peep!" Pictures
and text are a touch cutesy but babies who enjoy faces will like the
large, detailed features of the apple-cheeked tot, who could be a boy
or girl. (1-3)
__ Thump, Thump, Rat-a-Tat-Tat_ by Gene Baer. Illustrated by Lois Ehlert.
HarperCollins, 1989; 1996 (0-694-00813-3) $6.95
Now available in board book format (as well as hardcover, paperback
and big book) this popular title is a lot of noisy fun. As a bold
marching band comes closer and closer, the sounds it makes--"Thump,
Thump, Rat-a-tat-tat"--get louder and louder. Then it moves away and
the sound grows soft again, in a very enjoyable demonstration of the
concepts of near and far. Ehlert's brilliantly colored collage
illustrations are as exciting as the text, using just a few basic
shapes to create the whole band and all their instruments. (1-4)
__ The Snowy Day_ written and illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats. Viking,
1962; 1996 (0-670-86733-0) $6.99
Winner of the Caldecott medal, this classic is apparently now only
available in board book format. It's a simple story about a boy
discovering the joys of a snow-covered city: making tracks, snowmen
and angels and sliding down a "great big tall heaping mountain of
snow." The boy is very sad when the snowball he put in his pocket for
tomorrow disappears--but luckily, the next day brings new snow, for
him to share with his friend. Keat's illustrations are a gentle but
vivid mix of broad shapes and interesting textures: the boy's brown
face and bright red snowsuit against the snow has become a familiar
and unforgettable image for everyone who loves children's books.
(3-6)