Welcome to Kiss the Book Jr.!

Welcome! Kiss the Book Jr. is for board books, picture books, early readers, and chapter books.  Also, any novels and non-fiction that we agree are specifically Pre-K - 6 related.

Go to the original blog at  Kiss the Book for your middle school and high school review needs.

Podcast 3: A.G. Howard, Weaver of Fantasy

Anita Howard stopped by to talk about her latest book - Stain

Listen to the episode on Spreaker

Go here for the show notes

Podcast: Ep 2: December in Review

Episode 2 is now available here, or you can follow us on Spreaker.  Hopefully we will be up on iTunes and other podcasting systems soon!  This month I talk December books with Jen, one of my reviewers.  Find out what we thought were the best books reviewed on KTB last month.

You will find the show notes by clicking on Kiss the Book: the Podcast under our Links to Love

Listen to "Ep 2: December 2018 in Review" on Spreaker.

Olaf and the Three Polar Bears by Calliope Glass - ADVISABLE

Olaf and the Three Polar Bears by Calliope Glass.  PICTURE BOOK  Disney Press, 2018.  $13  9781368021401 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3) – ADVISABLE  

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH  

Olaf is out walking with Anna and Elsa, but gets separated from them.  When Olaf goes to look for the girls, he finds a cottage.  Much like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Olaf tries the porridge, chair and bed and wakes to find three polar bears standing over him.  Olaf runs out of the cottage and finds Elsa and Anna.  As he is recounting his story he can’t decide if it was a dream or reality, until he sees that the baby polar bear has followed him.  

Olaf is adorable, so having him be Goldilocks is adorable as well.  The illustrations are bright, and Olaf’s personality shows in his facial expressions.  The story line is nothing new, but if you have Frozen lovers, then they will enjoy this book.   

C. Peterson

The World of Angry Birds by Heather E. Schwartz - OPTIONAL

The World of Angry Birds by Heather E. Schwartz, 32 pages. NON-FICTION. Lerner, 2018. $23.  

Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G. 

BUYING ADVISORY: EL  – OPTIONAL   

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH 

The story starts with three students in Finland who won a contest in 2003 for the best mobile game and formed a company called Rovio. Six years later, a designer at Rovio created the angry bird characters, and the first version of Angry Birds was launched. After a slow start, the game took off when they got an ad about the game on Apple’s main page, and let players try it for free. 

The text outlines the main events in the birth and growth of Angry Birds and its products in one to two straight-forward paragraphs and one picture and caption per page. You will also find a glossary, though no bold words in the text, a Learn More section, and index. Every chapter has a short “Meet…” sidebar about a person involved in the story. It even mentions the additive nature of this and other video games. However, it provides very few facts about the people. For example, two of the five sidebars don’t even show the person you are meeting, and no mention is made of the relationship between founder Niklas Hed and CEO Mikael Hed (they’re cousins). Finally, the text includes some exaggerated opinions, like “No one was immune to the game’s charm.” I, for one, was, but this book did help me appreciate the Angry Birds phenomenon a little more. If you have fans at your school, this will be popular. 

Reviewed by P.K. Foster, teacher-librarian

One, Two, Winnie the Pooh by Sara Miller - ADVISABLE

One, Two, Winnie the Pooh by Sara Miller, illustrated by Jerrod Maruyama.  BOARD BOOK with Flaps.  Disney, 2018. $9.  9781368023726

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

In the feel of One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, join Pooh and his friends as they count items around the Hundred Acre Woods.

I like that each page also has a flao with things to actually count behind it.  An improvement on the concept for sure.  And every flap is super sturdy, so don’t worry about it falling apart.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

I’m a Truck Driver by Jonathan London - ESSENTIAL

I’m a Truck Driver by Jonathan London, illustrated by David Parkins.  BOARD BOOK.  Henry Holt (Macmillan), 2010, 2018 (board book). $8.  9781250175069

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

Meet the big rigs and heavy duty trucks that make our lives easier.

I especially love the faces of the animal friends on each page.  A pleasing variety of trucks are represented for any machine loving reader. Bonus that this version will stand up to wear and tear.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

Five Funny Bunnies illustrated by Hilli Kushnir - ESSENTIAL

Five Funny Bunnies illustrated by Hilli Kushnir.  BOARD BOOK. Houghton Mifflin, 2019.  $7.  9781328966032

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH

The Easter Bunny is trying to gather five little bunnies from out of the clover, so he calls to them and one by one they finally come.

Such a  cute little counting book reminiscent of Ten in the Bed. The rhyming text flows so well that reading it aloud is a dream.  Fun for lap time reading.  Inevitably this will find its way into many Easter baskets.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

Ellie in Color by Mike Wu - OPTIONAL

Ellie in Color by Mike Wu. BOAD BOOK.  Disney, 2018.  $8. 9781368012003

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Ellie the elephant is back. This time she is teaching us all about her favorite colors.  

As much as I love Wu’s artistic flair, the bald statements like “The wagon is red” and “The sky is blue” fell flat and felt cold.  I wanted then to be a playful as Ellie truly is.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

Where is the Green Sheep? By Mem Fox - ADVISABLE

Where is the Green Sheep? By Mem Fox, illustrated by Judy Horacek  BOARD BOOK.  Houghton Mifflin, 2004. REPRINT.  9781328482662

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

As you leaf through the pages you meet all kinds of fun sheep – but where is that green sheep?

The same problem still bothers me now – there are an awful lots of pages of sheep to wade through until you finally get to that green sheep.  I obviously lack the patience for that green sheep, because I turned to the back of the book to find him first.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

Where Birdie Lives by Elena Tsvetaeva - ADVISABLE

Where Birdie Lives by Elena Tsvetaeva.  BOARD BOOK. Clever Publishing, 2018. $13.  9781948418003

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K - ADVISABLE

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Dog is on the search for her friend Birdie.  Can you help her find her?

Sturdy flaps compliment cute illustrations in this flappy book.  The only reason it isn’t ESSENTIAL is because I expected there to words under the flaps – sometimes there was and sometimes there wasn’t – and the differences were jarring as a reader.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS

Jungle Cruise: Animals! by Kevin Lively - OPTIONAL

Jungle Cruise: Animals! by Kevin Lively, illustrated by Erwin Madrid.  BOARD BOOK  Disney Press, 2018.  $8.  9781368039314  

BUYING ADVISORY: PRE-K - OPTIONAL  

AUDIENCE APPEAL:  AVERAGE  

Similar to the scenes you see while riding on the Jungle Cruise at Disneyland, this book has ten page spreads that show different animals.  Each page has rhyming text about the picture and illustrations that are green and dark.  At the end of the book, the reader feels as though they are pulling up to the dock at the end of the ride and they see skipper Paul.  

This book is fun because it reminded me of the Jungle Cruise and that’s one of my favorite rides.  The illustrations are dark which was disappointing because it makes the book less appealing.  Also, the rhymes don’t always work, such as the line: “Look! There’s a tiger, striped black and orange!  Oops-nothing rhymes with orange.”  Which doesn’t make for a great read aloud. Cute idea, but not executed very well.  

C. Peterson