Five Little Pumpkins (Harper Growing Tree (Board Books))

Rating:
Summary: Halloween Board Book Not To Miss!
Review: Dan Yaccarino captures the essence of Halloween with simple, yet expressive pictures of pumpkins, ghosts and a black cat. My one year old son Ryan loves it when i read the story of the Five Little Pumpkins. He points to all the different pumpkin faces and loves their orange glow. The book wipes clean and withstands being dragged all over the house! I am a big fan of Dan Yaccarino's work, love his cartoon Oswald, so this book is a big Halloween fun delight!

Rating:
Summary: Great Halloween Book!
Review: I love this book. It is fun to say with the finger activity and sounds. My son loves it!

Rating:
Summary: Great Halloween Book!
Review: I love this book. It is fun to say with the finger activity and sounds. My son loves it!

Rating:
Summary: a favorite fingerplay now an excellent board book!
Review: Personally, I'm glad to see that board books are finally coming into their own and receiving professional, editorial reviews! Too often, board books play a very distant 2nd fiddle to their larger (and longer) kin, the picture books.

I've read a good deal of board books in my time, and have found that while there are vast numbers of them, some are just plain poorly written or illustrated-I fancy because people feel that they're only being given to very young children, so what's the big deal?

It IS a big deal, and Mr. Yaccarino does an excellent job with this work. Based on a popular fingerplay (hold up 5 fingers and sing/say the rhyme), the book is likely to already be familiar to most infants & toddlers, especially around Halloween time. The illustrations are bold, very bright oils that capture the playful spirit of the fingerplay and the text is a big, bold, easy-to-read non-serif font that fully compliment the story (all too often, the text in board books is difficult to read or distinguish different letter shapes & patterns).

Our five little pumpkins, each with a different expression that stays constant throughout the book, begin by sitting on a gate as an impish ghost floats out of a chimney on a house in the background. The sun is setting, and it's time for some fun!

The pumpkins see witches in the air, talk with each other, and even get juggled by the ghost, who seems to be having the most fun. Children can practice mastery at color identification-"what color is the grass? "-and emotions-"can you find the sad pumpkin? "-as well as simply gain fine motor skills by handling the toddler-sized book and turning the thick pages. I work for a literacy outreach program, and highly recommend this book for both our program and for parents/caregivers who are scouting about for quality board books.

Rating:
Summary: A Festive Halloween Board Book
Review: This board book with wipe-clean covers and pages is a delightful Halloween romp featuring the five famous little pumpkins of the familiar gradeschool song. Bright double page illustrations showing the five different jack-o-lanterns tell the tale of Halloween night that begins with the pumpkins "sitting on a gate" and finishes up with them "rolling out of sight." Simple but fun-filled witches on broomsticks, a black cat, and whispy smiling ghosts join in the fun. This book is rated for the ages of 1 1/2 and up and is basic and short enough to hold the attention of a very little one but can be used to learn reciting or singing. It is a nice touch for Halloween because there is no scariness in it and lots of smiling, bright colored action to follow. Sure to be a family favorite.