Kidsbooks

review of
Kidsbooks Publishing's Let's Learn Animals
by tENTATIVELY , a cONVENIENCE - December 31, 2021

The last bk I reviewed was a Star Wars Sound-Effects bk that I got at a thrift store b/c it came w/ buttons to press to play the sounds. I wanted to use it as an instrument &, in fact, I did sample from it in a movie I just finished today called "88 Instruments" ( https://youtu.be/zLZi2AVHx6w ; https://archive.org/details/88-instruments ). My playing w/ the Star Wars bk inspired me to look for other bks w/ similar sampler potential so I looked online & bought this one. I think it might be intended for 0 to 3 yr olds. Since I'm a 0 yr old it seems perfect for me. This has 27 sound effects.

The buttons for these sounds have cartoonish images of the animals whose names are pronounced followed by a representative sound. The bk is divided into multiple 2pp sections: "Farm Animals" (12 examples), "Forest Animals" (13 examples), "Rain Forest Animals" (12 examples), "Sea Animals" (14 examples), "Grassland Animals" (9 examples), "Desert Animals" (10 examples), "Mountain Animals" (12 examples), "Birds" (14 examples), "Arctic Animals" (10 examples), "Wetland Animals" (10 examples), & "Australian Bushland Animals" (10 examples). Since there are more examples than there are sounds for them I reckon one of the challenges for the young reader is to try to find at least one example in each category whose image they can match to a button. I succeeded in matching the dingo & the kookaburra, wch were the last 2 buttons from the last category. Suspicious that there might be a system that makes it easier for the budding young minds I noticed that the bobcat & the swan were the next buttons in reverse order (bottom-to-top, right-to-left). Yep, walrus & polar bear are the next buttons from the 2 next 2pp spread ("Arctic Animals"). Having my pattern recognition confirmed thus far I didn't pursue the matter any further (well, actually, I checked the next 2pp spread & got further confirmation). I also sampled from this is in the above-mentioned movie.

All in all, I like this genre of bks & imagine that they're excellent teaching tools. I'm already using mine to tell me how to conduct drunken brain-surgery on road-kills &, so far, I've brought thousands back to life. Don't thank me, I'm just doin' my job, ma'am.… (more)

In my opinion this is an impressive book. I like this book for two reasons: illustrations and accurate nonfiction information. Each page of the book includes one big picture in which you have to find other objects within. For example, one page includes a large picture that portrays the Solar System. Readers are instructed to look for each planet such as Jupiter, Mars, and Mercury referring to the picture next to the Planet name and description on the other page. The illustrations will keep readers engaged and active in their learning. Second, each piece of information in this book is accurate. Students are informed about the various parts of a space shuttle, such as: the Booster Rocket, Landing Gear, Wing Flap, and Cargo Bay. For example, from reading about the space shuttle, readers will know that “the cargo bay as a robotic arm that can lift satellites and place them in orbit.” The big idea of this picture book is to educate readers regarding the abundance of objects, planets, stars, and satellites in space.… (more)