In
Dinosnores by Sandra Boynton (Simon & Schuster, 9/27/22), the dinosaurs get ready for bed, then disturb their rabbit neighbor with some very loud snoring. The text and illustrations are both in Sandra Boynton's usual tongue-in-cheek style, with rhyme and wordplay, cartoonish faces and expressive eyes. The onomatopoetic sounds of the snoring dinosaurs make for a great opportunity to ham up a read-aloud, something my dinosaur-loving toddler son especially enjoys. The punchline of the story is not as clever as in some of Boynton's older books, but toddlers won't care. This book, along with the author's Dinosaur Dance, would make a great dino-themed story time, either for a group or just for bedtime.
I Want That, written by Hannah Eliot and illustrated by Ana Sanfelippo (Little Simon, 10/11/22), is an interactive board book in which the young toddler reader helps a series of babies by figuring out what they want and giving it to them. On each page, an infant expresses a desire for something to eat, or wear, or play with. Young readers can turn a wheel on the side of the page to view the available options, then stop on the item they want to give to the baby. As long as they leave the wheel in place, when they turn the page, they will see the result of their choice. My little girls have all loved taking caring of baby dolls as toddlers, and this book is a perfect extension of that interest. The fact that every option works within the context of the story means that kids have real agency in their contribution and are not just hoping to find the "right" answer. (There is one clear logical answer for most of them, but the silly options make the story even more fun!) Because the items available to give to the baby are never named in the text, there are also lots of opportunities for parents and caregivers to chat with their children about what they have selected, describing each item and connecting it to their kids' own lives. I think this is a fabulous concept for a board book. I'd love to see more.
In
The Thank You Book written by Danna Smith and illustrated by Juliana Perdomo (Little Simon, 9/6/22), rhyming text explains why and how we might say thank you, not just with words, but also with kind gestures and affectionate touches. The illustrations are brightly colored and populated by diverse figures. There appear to be a couple of same-sex couples, though their interactions with each other are platonic-looking enough that it's not something my kids are likely to notice. Most of the emphasis is on kids learning how to show and accept gratitude to and from each other and the adults in their lives. When I worked in the library, I liked to do a thank-you-themed story time for Thanksgiving, and this would fit right into that theme, along with
Thanks a Lot by Raffi and
Thankful by Elaine Vickers.
Snow by Jane Ormes (Nosy Crow, 8/23/2022) is a lift-the-flap book about animal families who live where it snows. On each page, there are mother and father animals along with their correct names (e.g. a daddy reindeer called a bull, a mommy whale called a cow, etc.) When the young reader lifts the flap, the offspring and its name are revealed. At the end of the book, the four species that appear in the earlier pages come back to introduce the collective noun used to refer to them. This book perfectly stitches together three things my toddlers love: baby animals, flaps, and new words. The illustrations strike a good balance between child-friendly and scientifically accurate. The pinks, blues, and greens of the pictures maintain a cool wintry feeling throughout the book which captures the animals' climate in a visceral way. A book like this is a great way to sneak some nonfiction into your story time stack!
