This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday) where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. Along with tons of writing wisdom, she keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books.
Title: Open This Little Book
Author: Jesse Klausmeier
Illustrator: Suzy Lee
Publisher: Chronicle Books, 2013
Audience: 3-8 (I would say 3-5)
Themes: Colors, friendship
Opening: “Open this . . . Little Red Book”
Synopsis: Inviting the reader to be part of the story, the book asks them to open a book and read about another animal who is opening another book. And inside the covers are progressively smaller pages that represent book covers that the reader opens to meet all the characters, then progressively larger pages that represent the back covers as the books are closed in sequence.
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| Don't you love these colors! |
Whether the page stock stands up to the repeated tugs remains to be seen. When the books got smaller, I had no problem with the page turns but when the books got larger, sometimes it was difficult to lift the edge. Perhaps the smaller hands of the intended readers would have no trouble! Also, because the tiniest book at the center is so-oo tiny, this is best read to one child at a time or I predict fighting to flip pages and see everything there is to see. . .
Activities/Resources: See the book "in action" in the Youtube video. Download teacher's resources from the Chronicle website here. (note: it took longer than I expected for the 7 page guide to download). Perhaps just ask a child what they think each character is reading about. (ex. What would a ladybug read about in a Little Green Book?) Use colored construction paper to make your own colored books. You can use a stapler or hole punch for an easy version or follow the directions here (this requires an adult's help to cut the pages).
Thanks for stopping by for another review!
