Rating: 
Summary: Delightful book, but combined with music, its IRRESISTIBLE!
Review: "Baby Beluga" tells the story of a little Beluga Whales daily adventures in the "deep blue sea." The beautiful illustrations and charming story captured my attention instantly. Not familiar with Raffi, and his music, I was unaware of the popularity of the song, by the same title, until noticing the back cover, where it is mentioned. I have since purchased the CD, and CAN NO LONGER read this book; I have to SING it! "Baby Beluga in the deep blue sea, swim so wild and you swim so free. Heaven above and the sea below, and a little white whale on the go."The editorial comments regarding Ashley Wolff's illustrations are harsh. As an artist, I regard the work to be first-rate! The mostly analogous color palette (ocean blues and greens) is bright and true to life, while the expressions are communicative and warm. Perhaps, a little more contrast between the Beluga Whales and the sea is in order, but that is a personal preference. Besides, compared to ANY of the severely cold computer-generated images available in books today, the illustrations in this book are superior. "Baby Beluga" is a delightful book independently, although, combined with the music; it is IRRESISTIBLE! One-year and up.
Rating:
Summary: Delightful book, but combined with music, its IRRESISTIBLE!
Review: "Baby Beluga" tells the story of a little Beluga Whales daily adventures in the "deep blue sea." The beautiful illustrations and charming story captured my attention instantly. Not familiar with Raffi, and his music, I was unaware of the popularity of the song, by the same title, until noticing the back cover, where it is mentioned. I have since purchased the CD, and CAN NO LONGER read this book; I have to SING it! "Baby Beluga in the deep blue sea, swim so wild and you swim so free. Heaven above and the sea below, and a little white whale on the go." The editorial comments regarding Ashley Wolff's illustrations are harsh. As an artist, I regard the work to be first-rate! The mostly analogous color palette (ocean blues and greens) is bright and true to life, while the expressions are communicative and warm. Perhaps, a little more contrast between the Beluga Whales and the sea is in order, but that is a personal preference. Besides, compared to ANY of the severely cold computer-generated images available in books today, the illustrations in this book are superior. "Baby Beluga" is a delightful book independently, although, combined with the music; it is IRRESISTIBLE! One-year and up.
Rating:
Summary: The only thing missing is the music!
Review: A simple beautiful tale of the magnificent beluga whale. You just don't find very many young childrens books involving a beluga. We went on a visit to the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Seattle, Washington where they have real white beluga whales in full display at the underground aquarium. My children began singing the song, remembering one of their favorite songs and books. The pictures are simple and uncluttered. Children will focus on the story, song and cute little white whale. Another excellent Raffi production. Great for reading or singing. A very peaceful, natural feel and connection to the water. It makes a grand bedtime moment.
Rating: 
Summary: Even my husband sings this song
Review: Before we even knew of this book we had been playing Raffi's "Baby Beluga" CD for our small boy. I had noticed the book in stores but thought it was silly to have a book for a song we already knew. And then we found the book in the public library. Hello! Our two year old was so excited. He adores sea creatures so he would have liked the book even if it were just illusrations of fish and whales, but it thrilled him to discover that his song was in this book! He often sings full phrases of the song to us. He has memorized many of the words and has for a long time been taken with the line "Moon is shining and the stars are out" which to him is THE correct way to discuss any night sky in any picture, even if no stars or moon are visible. I digress. The book is a hit. Last time we went to the library our son put in his order. He wanted "Baby Beluga" and "Caps for Sale". Unfortunately "Baby Beluga" was out, so we had to wait by the phone till it came in. This evening I went to say goodnight to our son while my husband was reading the bedtime stories, and I caught him singing "Baby Beluga" as they read the book together--a sweet sound in the ears of a wife who rarely hears her husband sing. The words are simple imagery; the pictures have introduced our youngster to other sealife, like seals, walruses, narwhals (the ones with the unicorn tusk)... but we like the book mainly because of our son's enjoyment. It's simple to sing, and it's a sweet lullaby full of joy. I'm sure our little guy imagines himself to be the little beluga whale in the song. After all what toddler doesn't love to be surrounded by those who hold him dear? We can all use a little dose of adoration.
Rating:
Summary: Love this!
Review: Got this and the CD as a gift and we all sing along. Very sweet - and now I'm back for more Raffi CDs and books!
Rating:
Summary: Baby Beluga is the little white whale on the go
Review: I came across this book appropriately enough at an aquarium which is definitely an appropriate place to find this book. The illustrations in this book are engaging. I am not an art critic, but children under 5 will be captivated by the drawings. I was glad that they mentioned on the back of the book that Raffi also did Wheels on the Bus or I probably would not have had a clear tune in my head. Once I put the tune in my head, I liked the book even more. My oldest nephew liked it, so next time I'll have to show it to my youngest nephew to see if he likes the little white whale on the go.
Rating:
Summary: so-so artwork but you can't beat the song
Review: I think that I have sung Baby Beluga over a thousand times since my eldest was born 4 years ago. Both she and her younger sister love the song. I agree that the artwork is mediocre, but if you use the book as an accompaniment to the song, then it works.
Rating:
Summary: We love baby beluga
Review: My daughter loves this book. Loves the variety of sea animals and the like. I'm just wondering if anyone knows what the animal is with the unicorn horn sticking out of its head. ...
Rating:
Summary: Make the song come to life with pictures
Review: My sons love Raffi music and videos. We have checked out all of his "song" books at the library so I decided to buy a few of them for our own use. My guys grab the books when they hear the song and like me to turn the pages with the music. My only complaint is that the library editions had the music and words at the back, whereas the board books do not, so if you can carry a tune but haven't heard the song, you won't know the rhythm of the music. But these books are still great for reading, even if you don't know the tune. And if you have Raffi music in the car, include this book for the back seat passengers to "read" while the music is playing. Baby Beluga has delightful illustrations of "sea creatures" (whales, penguins, etc) as well as making the song personal by including a young eskimo child in the book. Most children are fans of whales, seals and the like anyways, but parents should enjoy reading this book to their children. It's easy to read, with clear, large print and simple pictures. Great for the toddler age to read or sing along and the short enough for the under 18 months crowd. And while the animals are not labeled, it would be perfect for a before and after book if you take young children to an aquarium or zoo.
Rating:
Summary: The only thing missing is the music!
Review: My two year old daughter LOVES this book/song. My only complaint is that in this book, the music isn't included at the end (Raffi's "Wheels on the Bus" song to read has the sheet music included on the last page). Without also owning the "Baby Beluga" Raffi CD, we wouldn't know the tune. Other than that, it's great.
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