Elizabeth Doyle

A board book with concentric cutouts takes readers from Neptune at the outer edge of the solar system into the Sun, with cute-faced planets, moons, and stars. Each page has two couplets about each planet. The first couplet states a worry the planet feels about its uniqueness — is Uranus’ side tilt weird? Is Mars too dusty? But the second couplet resolves the tension, stating a quality that the planet is proud of: “It’s pretty cool to be the most cold!” for Uranus and “It has the show more tallest mountain of any planet here!” for Mars. Being able to shift the vocal tone from worry to pride on each page makes it fun to read aloud. show less

This isn't the type of board book I usually recommend, but it's unique and utterly delightful and I couldn't resist it, even if it's a little old for the board book audience.

Each letter is created out of a fascinating plethora of items beginning with the letter and accompanied by an alliterative sentence. For example, T is composed of a tiger, toad, teacup, tricycle, trombone, top hat, top, toucan, tie, thimble, telescope, tree, train, turtle and so much more. The accompanying line reads show more "Toucan and tiger toot a trombone." There is a final spread of all 26 letters, followed by six pages listing all the items in each letter.

The art has a Victorian feel, primarily composed of delicate pen and ink drawings, all brilliantly colored. There are more modern images included as well. Many of the images are raised so you can feel interesting textures on the individual pictures as well as the letter as a whole.

Verdict: Most babies and toddlers won't have the attention span or the development to find the tiny pictures, but this is a really lovely book nonetheless and worth purchasing for that small group of toddlers who will appreciate it and for parents looking for board books for older preschoolers who are still learning to care for books. Think of it as a novelty book rather than a board book and it will definitely find an audience.

ISBN: 9781481436991; Published 2015 by Little Simon/Simon and Schuster; Borrowed from another library in my consortium show less

Extremely cute introductions to the planets in our solar system. Includes what Pluto is and why it’s not considered a planet anymore without being a jerk about it. (Science evolves! That’s how it works!) I love the illustrations.

This is an adorable, fun, fact-filled board book. An Amazon Best Book of 2018!

From the back cover: “8 little planets going ‘round the sun. Could these little planets be having much fun? YES! Neptune loves how fast it spins on its axis. Mars has the tallest mountain. And Mercury is the closest to the Sun. Each planet is unique and that’s what makes each planet feel special!” And the book is dedicated to minor planet Pluto.

Perfect for the preschool kiddies. With its catchy rhymes it show more is fun to read aloud. “Fiery VENUS must feel rather fraught. 900 degree temperatures sure are hot! But the 2nd little planet never cries. It loves being the brightest planet in the sky.”

Two colorful, beautifully illustrated pages are devoted to each planet (18 pages total). The book is the perfect size for small hands - 8 x 0.5 x 8 inches.

The author, Chris Ferrie, is the creator of the Baby University series. show less