High Five

March 4, 2019
In this interactive picture book by the Dragons Love Tacos team, a high-five champion called Sensei, who resembles Bigfoot and wears a multicolored belt, offers to apprentice readers. It’s all to prepare for the annual high-five contest, where, Rubin writes, “high five fans from far and near/ all press their palms against the rest,/ to see whose high five is the best.” Spreads invite readers to try out their best high fives, and Salmieri employs forced perspective so that each contestant’s slapping hand extends right up to the image’s foreground. The narrative arc is relatively straightforward: there’s the training, in which the reader apparently makes a very favorable impression; followed by the big competition, which slowly ups the ante; culminating in the reader matching slaps with Octopus Jones (“He has eight hands, you just have two.../ a little uneven, it’s true”) before the winner is revealed. Although Rubin’s rhymes are only serviceable and the plot feels less sturdy than the team’s other collaborations, the pictures offer plenty of room to receive readers’ high-five innovations, and the pages crackle with Salmieri’s neon palette and scratchy, kinetic pencil lines. Ages 3–5.

Young listeners will enjoy this audio picture book featuring a high-five competition held once a year. Chock-full of advice for potential contenders, author Adam Rubin narrates with energy and excitement. From the opening notes, the background sounds impeccably match the text, adding an additional layer of enjoyment to the listening experience. Doing a creditable job of narrating, Rubin provides the appropriate emotions to the text, eagerness at learning tricks of the sport, exhilaration at competing, and trepidation at going up against difficult opponents. While a lovely listen on its own, if paired with the print book, its illustrations will please young listeners. A.L.S.M. � AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine