Hooray for Babies!

January 15, 2019
A baby bonanza!As in her earlier collaboration with Marla Frazee, Everywhere Babies (2001), Meyers uses light, rhyming verse to offer a joyful celebration of babyhood. Illustrator Cornelison depicts a diverse group of babies, with a range of skin colors and hair textures, enjoying all kinds of activities, only occasionally with glimpses of adults entering the busy scenes. For the most part, the babies are depicted in idyllic, independent groups; this at times strains credulity, as in a scene in which five babies float in a pool on individual inflatable devices without an adult in sight. Neither text nor art offers a narrative arc, though as the end of the book nears, the busy babies do get sleepy. "We're tired and we're hungry now, / It's time to have a snack. / We're glad that we're still baby friends, / tucked in for a nap," reads the accompanying text. Three spreads follow this one, with the babies now awake and frolicking again. The illustrations are painterly, done in bright colors with an eye to realistic detail. However, the choice to leave adults out means missed opportunities to celebrate same-sex caregiving couples, one of the delightful features of the earlier title. The heavy, card-stock pages will stand up to a fair amount of abuse.Sweet but not special. (Picture book. 6 mos.-3)

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March 18, 2019
Babies enjoy being babies as they engage with the world in gentle, hazy paintings. At the beach, they are seen playing in the sand and stepping in the water: “I love my tickly baby toes,/ my fingers big and little.” Babies recline on inner tubes, floating lazily on blue pool water; elsewhere, three head for a meltdown: “We’re tired and we’re hungry now./ It’s time to have a snack.” In final spreads, diverse babies picnic and play together at a park: “We raise our sippy cups up high/ and give a baby cheer./ We say ‘HOORAY for BABIES!’/ We’re happy to be here.” A buoyant celebration of all things baby. Ages up to 3.

January 24, 2020

Baby-Toddler-As she did in Everywhere Babies, Meyers is back again to celebrate the beautiful miracles that babies truly are. Cornelison does a good job of representing an array of skin colors and hair types. The book contains a soft color palette and spreads of pencil etched-type illustrations. While these illustrations aren't as colorful and lively as the others, there is great attention to detail. The simple rhyming text tells a story of the things that babies do and look at. A two-page colorful spread shows a baby looking lovingly and curiously at a mirror as he stares at his reflection; "I'm glad that I'm a baby. I love my baby face. Two eyes, two ears, one mouth, one nose, each in a perfect place." While the book is definitely focused on the feelings and expressions of all babies, there is barely any parental/caregiver interaction shown. The absence of caregivers is most noticeable in a two-page spread of babies floating in tubes in a pool without adult supervision. However, the lack of parental figures also allows the reader to focus on the baby's feelings, actions, and motives. VERDICT A sweet tale that most young children will enjoy and a great tale to share with babies as they look at images of their daily lives.-Kristen Todd-Wurm, Middle Country Public Library, NY

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