Category: Children’s Book Review

The Very Fluffy Kitty, Papillon by A.N. Kang | Children’s Book Review (Blog Tour + Giveaway)

Posted September 7, 2016 by Jana in Blog Tour, Children's Book Review, Giveaway, Inner Child / 3 Comments

 

Welcome to my stop along the blog tour for The Very Fluffy Kitty, Papillon, hosted by The Irish Banana Review!

The Very Fluffy Kitty, Papillon by A.N. Kang
Illustrated by: A.N. Kang
Published by: Disney-Hyperion on September 6, 2016
Pages: 40
Format: Hardcover
Source: From the publisher
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Papillon is a very fluffy kitty. So fluffy that he’s lighter than air! His owner tries to weigh him down, but Papillon just wants to fly.

One particularly sunny day, he floats right out the window! Exploring the wide world is exhilarating, but it’s also a little scary. Will his new friend, a bird, be able to help him find his way home?

Whimsical art and airy text come together seamlessly in this delightful debut by A. N. Kang.

You. Guys. This book is ADORABLE. I honestly just can’t even handle the cuteness that is fluffy (but not fat) little Papillon. After being weighed down (literally) by food and intricate costumes to keep him from floating away, Papillon decides he’s tired of it all (cats are like that). He doesn’t even like hats! So out the window he floats, and readers young and old will delight in seeing where he goes and how he makes his way home.

This is a very simple, adorable story with hints of humor that will have little ones giggling. It is a quick read, perfect for a bedtime story or for emerging readers looking to practice their reading skills. The words are easy to read, presented in easy-to-read fonts, and surrounded by an entire page of white space (for the most part). Opposing pages are filled with adorable images in soft, muted colors. Papillon is a very cute kitty. I love how big and fluffy and cuddly he looks (seriously, if they make a stuffed Papillon I will buy him. I’m not even kidding), and his facial expressions are perfection. Readers will also have fun spotting his bright red little bird friend, who makes an appearance on nearly every spread.

Bottom line, this book is a welcomed addition to my children’s book collection and is a new favorite go-to for a feel-good story that I will recommend over and over again. Any kitty-loving reader, no matter their age, will find a brand new friend in the fluffiest kitty ever: Papillon. Goodreads and Amazon both mention that this is book #1, so you better believe that I’ll be keeping tabs on Papillon and his next adventure. I’m hoping for many more books about him in the future!

About A.N. Kang

 A. N. Kang (www.annakangdesign.com) was born in a little town in South Korea, with endless rice fields around her house. She grew up entertaining herself with picturebooks, and drew constantly. After moving to the United States as a teenager, she graduated from art school and began to design jewelry, greeting cards, and holiday installations all over New York City. She now lives and works in New Jersey with her sassy cat, Papillon. This is Kang’s debut.

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Tour Schedule:
9/4: The Irish Banana Review
9/5: Addicted 2 Novels
9/6: Mundie Kids
9/7: That Artsy Reader Girl
9/8: Vi3tbabe
9/9: FangirlConfessions
9/10: Owl Always Be Reading

Pigs and a Blanket by James Burks | Children’s Book Review

Posted April 6, 2016 by Jana in Blog Tour, Children's Book Review / 1 Comment

Welcome to by stop along the Pigs and a Blanket blog tour, hosted by The Irish Banana Review!

Pigs and a Blanket by James Burks
Illustrated by: James Burks
Published by: Disney-Hyperion on April 5, 2016
Pages: 32
Format: Hardcover
Source: From the publisher for the blog tour
Add to Goodreads • Buy from Amazon

Pig siblings Henry and Henrietta love their green blanket. It is soft, it smells good, and it makes a great cape! As much as they each love playing with the blanket, they don’t love sharing it. Will ripping it in two solve all their problems?

Author/illustrator James Burks has created a funny, relatable, sweet story about two pigs who, despite their individual interests pulling them in different directions, really prefer to remain side by side.

Pigs and a Blanket is a very sweet, simple story about sharing, getting along, and loving your siblings. I loved the illustrations. The two pigs have some of the cutest facial expressions! The colors are also bright and vivid, with lots of details that are fun to point out with a child. The story is very short, so it makes a great bedtime read.

There are very few words on each page, so emergent readers will not be intimidated. There is some repetition of phrases, and the font is large, black, and easy to read. The illustrations essentially tell the story on their own, so children who are experiencing reading for the first time will be delighted when they discover that they can make up the story as they go. For this reason, Pigs and a Blanket is a wonderful book talk book.

I really loved the ending. This book subtly teaches a lesson on sharing without preaching to the child or shoving the message down their throats. It simply alludes to the fact that playtime is more fun if you’re playing together. I would definitely recommend this story.

Tour Schedule:
4/4: Vi3tbabe

Bug Zoo Illustrated by Andy Harkness | Children’s Book Review (Blog Tour)

Posted March 8, 2016 by Jana in Blog Tour, Children's Book Review, Inner Child / 0 Comments

Welcome to my stop along the blog tour for Bug Zoo, hosted by The Irish Banana Review!

bug zoo

Bug Zoo by Lisa Wheeler
Series: Walt Disney Animation Studios Artist Showcase
Illustrated by: Andy Harkness
Published by: Disney-Hyperion on February 16, 2016
Pages: 40
Source: From the publisher for the blog tour
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Ben loves bugs: armored, teeny, leggy, greenie, floaty, wingy, jumpy, springy bugs! After a trip to the city zoo, Ben collects all of the bugs he can find and sets up a bug zoo. He couldn’t be happier–but what about his bugs?

As soon as I received this book, I noticed that it is part of a series called Walt Disney Animation Studios Artist Showcase. Being an artist myself, I was curious about what this series is all about and did a little research. Here is what I found, from an article on Publishers Weekly:

The Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios have teamed up with Disney Worldwide Publishing to launch a series of children’s books created by animation artists and storytellers at each studio. The Animation Studios Artist Showcase program gives employees the opportunity to bring their artistic talents to the page in picture books featuring original art and characters.

I thought this was really cool, and knowing the whys of the series really changed my reading experience. According to Amazon, Lisa Wheeler wrote this story and Andy Harkness, who has worked on many of my favorite Disney movies (Mulan, Tangled, and Frozen to name a few), dreamed it up and designed the illustrations using sculpture. You can tell that the focus is meant to be on the magical illustrations and not the story, as the story is very simple. Ben’s love of bugs drives him to create a bug zoo, but nobody comes. He slowly begins to realize that the bugs are not happy, and that maybe keeping them in jars is not the best idea. While the story is simple, the illustrations are quite the opposite.

Andy’s style is striking and vivid, and the colors are amazing. The extreme detail and the three-dimensionality makes each page feel like an extension of your own world. I felt myself wanting to reach out and touch the tree bark or the grass. These same details also tell the story on their own, which is wonderful for emergent readers because they can “read” without assistance. I can just imagine a little child ooing and ahhing over the illustrations and making up their own story to go along with them. Personally, I really hate bugs, but these ones don’t make me squeamish. You don’t have to love bugs to love the illustrations, but if you have a child in your life who does love bugs this book is a treat. The words in the story are simple and easy to sound out, and the font choice does not hinder from the readability of those words. The moral of the story is simple, and reminds us all that nature is truly magical and needs to be left alone sometimes. Picture books for boys can be harder to come by, and this is definitely one that can be added to the pile. Girls will appreciate and enjoy it as well, though, and parents will be pleased with a bedtime story that is not overly wordy. It’s a win for all, but especially for the little bug lover in your life.

Read more about Andy’s creative process and inspiration for Bug Zoo on Disney Insider.
Follow him on Instagram to see more of his artwork, including some of the illustrations from Bug Zoo.

Visit the rest of the tour stops for more reviews!

3/7: Reads All the Books
3/8: That Artsy Reader Girl
3/9: Gun In Act One
3/10: Such A Novel Idea
3/11: Reading Is Better With Cupcakes

Tales from Christmas Wood by Suzy Senior | Children’s Book Review

Posted December 2, 2015 by Jana in Children's Book Review, Inner Child / 1 Comment

Tales from Christmas Wood by Suzy Senior
Illustrated by: James Newman Gray
Published by: Lion Hudson PLC on September 18, 2015
Pages: 32
Source: From the publisher through Netgalley
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Christmas wood is full of animals: Badger, Fidgety Fox, Owl (not Wise Old Owl, just Owl), the Rabbit family, Tiny Mouse, and Robin. It’s nearly Christmas and all the animals are getting ready to celebrate – Badger is looking for new friends, Tiny is making (or is that eating…) gingerbread, and Rosie Rabbit just can’t get ANY peace and quiet! Five festive stories from the animals in the wood all come together in a fantastically Christmassy finale in a barn with some rather special guests…

This book is a cute anthology of five very short stories about different animals who live in Christmas Wood. Each animal is looking for something, and each story has a lesson. Badger is bigger than all the other animals, and is having a hard time making friends. She asks the owl for advice, and while he feels ill-equipped to help her, she leaves very happy. The second story is about a mouse who made gingerbread for his friends, but somehow lost all of it in his tummy. He felt bad, but grandma always makes things better. The third story is about a rabbit named Rosie whose brothers are making it very hard for her to concentrate on making Christmas cards. She throws a tantrum and storms out into the snow, concerning her brothers and making them realize how much they love having her around. Then we have Robin, who loves playing make believe. He wants to be a hero more than anything, and Rosie the Rabbit gives him that opportunity. Robin realizes he does not have to he a super hero to be special. All the animals come together in the end for a festive Christmas Eve adventure. They each learn the true meaning of Christmas at a very festive Christmas party, with gifts, friends, and singing.

My favorite thing about this book are the illustrations. They are adorable and so warm and cheerful. The animals have such sweet faces, and the illustrator is able to paint light in a way that reminds me of Thomas Kincaid (although simpler). I only wish the type had been given as much attention. A very generic font was used for the story itself, and the thin black letters get lost in the illustrations. I would have loved to see a more whimsical font and more thought put into the placement and size of the words. I also think there were too many words on a page. Perhaps this will be fixed before printing, though.

All in all, I really enjoyed this sweet Christmas book. The stories all feel very short and disjointed on their own, so they should be read back to back in one story time experience. I would not recommend reading one a night unless your child is old enough to remember each one and tie them together in the end. I think it’s a great addition to any family’s Christmas book collection, and I know I’d love to snuggle in bed with my littles someday and read this cozy tale.

The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse in Canada and Queensland | Children’s Book Reviews and Giveaway

Posted November 30, 2015 by Jana in Blog Tour, Children's Book Review, Giveaway, Inner Child / 9 Comments

Welcome to my stop along the The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse blog tour, hosted by iRead Book Tours. These books are very cute (and educational!), and I’m excited to share my reviews of them with you today!

The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse in Canada by Gwyneth Jane Page
Illustrated by Megan Elizabeth
Series: The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse #1
Published by First Choice Books
Pages: 42
Source: From the author
Amazon • Amazon.ca • Barnes & Noble

PJ Mouse, an adorable little stuffed animal, was lost and alone until young Emily heard his cries for help. Now, along with his new family, PJ gets to travel the world-discovering exciting new places and people along the way!

Come join PJ on his first adventure across Canada as he hikes on a glacier in the Rockies, finds a salt lake in the prairies, and walks on the ocean floor in Nova Scotia.

I love books about travel, but I particularly love children’s travel books because they open young minds to other countries and cultures. While Canada is not at all far away from those of us in the USA, this book transports you there and takes you on an exciting adventure. PJ is a very cute mouse, who comes to life with the sweet, childlike illustrations, filled with color. The book is laid out in easy-to-manage chapters, so struggling readers do not have to worry about taking on too much at one time.

PJ has a very sweet voice, and I loved reading his thoughts and dialogue. He says some funny things. I love the magical moment when he is found by Emily, wet and soggy under a park bench. She heard his cries for help when no grown-ups could, and she can talk to him when nobody else can. This book is filled with complex vocabulary words, which will create wonderful learning experiences for children, especially if their parent is reading with them and can further explain the concepts behind these words. Emily gets to explain to PJ what the word “conceited” means, and she explained it in a way that children will understand and absorb. He also learns what a fifth-wheel is, as well as a glacier. The two have wonderful experiences together, and their excitement is infectious. Readers will learn how long and tall the Rocky Mountains are, that snow lasts in very high elevations even during the summertime, what a crevasse is, what it’s like swimming in salt water, waterfalls and erosion, some French words, a little history, that it’s ok to be short, and more. PJ gets into some sticky situations, but always come out learning from them.

All in all, I really enjoyed this cute, educational story and think it would be a wonderful way to teach youngsters a little something, while having fun at the same time!

The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse in Queensland by Gwyneth Jane Page
Illustrated by Megan Elizabeth
Series: The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse #2
Published by First Choice Books
Pages: 42
Source: From the author
Amazon • Amazon.ca • Barnes & Noble

Come join PJ on this, his second adventure, along the coast of Queensland, as he snorkels at the Great Barrier Reef, chats with a Loggerhead turtle in the midst of a great undertaking, and explores the tropical rainforest – until he ha to be rescued by one of the local friendly wildlife.

This was another cute installment of The Travel Adventures of PJ Mouse! Pretty much everything I said about the first book applies to this one as well. The illustrations are very cute and colorful, the book is organized into small chapters, PJ is a funny little guy (although he rambles a bit too much at times), and the story not only entertains, but teaches readers about a new place. This time, we visited Queensland, Australia. Lucky PJ! I’ve always wanted to visit Australia. Readers pack their suitcases (much bigger than PJ’s, of course) and board the plane with PJ and Emily.

During his second adventure, PJ learns what a kangaroo is (he thinks it’s an Australian mouse!), that just because you go to the opposite side of the world does not mean you have to walk on your hands, why you can’t breathe underwater, some more vocabulary words, how trees can grow to be REALLY old, and more! He gets to ride the rides at Dreamworld, go boogie-boarding at the beach, go snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef (and talk to the fish–this chapter was my favorite. Very magical! I love the descriptions of the sea life underwater), get some help from a sea turtle and a lorikeet, explore the rainforest, watch loggerhead turtles lay eggs on the beach, and go four wheeling.

I really enjoyed this adventure with little PJ, and think readers young and old will as well!

Make sure you enter this tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win the first book (Canada), your very own stuffed PJ, and a passport sticker book!

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