Good Night, Baby Moon - DK Canada

DK Canada has some wonderful new books coming out this fall for both adults and children. Here's one that Little Guy and I enjoyed - Good Night, Baby Moon.

The cover is beautiful - gold lettering and stars on an indigo background. A  cutout silhouette of rabbits is framed by the title. But here's the fun part - simply press the button in the upper right hand corner to 'light up' the moon in the frame. (Yes, it is battery operated. The battery cover is securely attached with a screw).

The inside pages are 'board book' thickness are of a rich, glossy stock. They too have a lovely nighttime background with rabbit silhouettes. Little guy had to count how many rabbits were on each page. The moon is full on one page, then half, then crescent, gone and back again on subsequent pages. This book is a good introduction for toddlers as to how the moon changes shape.

The text is in a rhyming format which I always enjoy reading. It seems to flow very easily and the cadence for each page becomes almost sing song. This is a 'gentle' read. The tones suggest night and sleep. It is fairly short at four double pages. Little Guy was fascinated by the light up button. We had to flip to the front cover many, many times to press the button yet again. I do wish there was some way that the inner pictures of the changing moon could have been highlighted by the light as well.

There's a Good Night Baby Moon 'toddler time' activity kit here that you can download as well.

Good Night, Baby Moon is a beautifully illustrated book, with that little extra (the light) that had Little Guy asking to read it many, many nights in a row. And he learned something too! See below for a peek inside.

Creatures Great and Small with DK Canada

To celebrate the release of their new Pocket Birds of Canada and Super Bug Encyclopedia, DK Canada has put together a Creatures Great and Small Boutique, with books to satisfy your curiosity about many other members of the animal kingdom.

What caught my eye? Well, I've got a wee grandson who just adores books. He'll be making his first trip to a zoo this summer, so My First Zoo: Let's Meet the Animals was a must read for us.

It's a board book, more specifically it's a tabbed board book. See all those pictures across the top and sides? Little fingers can pull on the tab and the book will easily open to the two sided page for more pictures and info. Kids will easily start to 'bookmark' their favourites with the tabbed picture.

The pictures are realistic - it's going to be easy to recognize some of the more exotic animals when he actually does see them in person. The colours are bright and attractive. And the book is sturdy - just right for a toddler.

As you can see, there are many pictures on each page, providing lots to look at and talk about. My wee one has farm animals down pat, so he was quite happy to read the petting zoo pages many times. At the Zoo, Primates, African Safari, Tropical Animals, Cold Zone, Bird House (this was also a favourite) Creepy Crawlies (not Gramma's favourite) Reptile House, Aquarium, Australian Animals and Nocturnal Animals are the other 'chapters'. I must admit, there were a few animals I didn't recognize! (I'd never heard of a genet)

You can also make a quick game out of finding the tabbed picture in the larger grouping. There's some questions on each page as well, such as what animal would you like to pet? Count the fish, etc.

We've been reading mostly stories so far, so this is his first 'non-fiction' book. It might be a good jump off point for more exploring as he gets older as well. (DK has a great online resource called DKfindout.com for children ages 7-11 who are curious about just about anything - it's worth checking out.)

Gramma and little guy vote thumbs up on My First Zoo - and we're looking forward to seeing the animals in person this summer!

BabyLit - Jennifer Adams and Alison Oliver

My interest in children's books has been reignited since becoming a Grandma. We're still in the board book stage. I've just come across the BabyLit series which combines classic literature and a learning opportunity to wee ones in board books.

The Secret Garden: A Flowers Primer by Jennifer Adams and illustrated by Alison Oliver. Taking inspiration from Frances Hodgson Burnett's story, Adams and Oliver have produced a colorful garden within the pages of this sturdy little book. The artwork is bright and vibrant, sure to catch a little one's eye. Each flower is named and recognizable. The opposite page has a quote about each flower surrounded by line drawings of the same. My only concern is that the 'words' page is a wee bit dull compared to the artwork page.

The Secret Garden is a wonderful way to introduce a baby/toddler to flowers and colors. Peek inside The Secret Garden.

And now that we've worked on colors, how about some language with Don Quixote: A Spanish Language primer, also by Jennifer Adams with art by Alison Oliver.

The basics of this classic tale of a brave Spanish knight are illustrated in bright, bold drawings. The same picture with slight changes is English on one side and Spanish on the opposite. Man, books, armor, horse, lady, windmills, friend, castle, goat and bed are the featured pictures and words. And isn't that the story in a nutshell?! Phonetic pronunciations for both English and Spanish speaker is on the back cover. Have a sneak peek inside Don Quixote.

From the BabyLit site: "With the timeless popularity of classic writers like Lewis Carroll, Charlotte Bronte, Jane Austen, and William Shakespeare, BabyLit® is a fashionable way to introduce your toddler to the world of classic literature. At BabyLit, we believe in the power of reading. Why? Because books take us places. Good places. And when we read with a child, we go places together. It’s more than just reading. It’s learning. It’s experiencing. It’s growing. If a million copies of our books encourage just one parent to read with their child, we will have succeeded. And printed a lot of books."

These two will making the trip with Grandma to read with my little guy this weekend!