Baby Goes to Market

February 1, 2018

Toddler-PreS-A joyful black baby and his mother go shopping in an open air market in West Africa, where unbeknownst to Mama, baby is busy collecting his own wares from a variety of vendors. The rhythmic text is perfectly suited for reading aloud, and young listeners will quickly pick up on the inside joke between author and listeners as the illustrations feature the mischievious baby on Mama's back, adding his own items to the wide brimmed basket balanced atop her head. "Market is very crowded. Baby is very curious. Baby is so curious that Mrs. Ade, the banana seller, gives Baby six bananas. Baby is so surprised. Baby eats one banana...and puts five bananas in the basket." The pattern of Mama shopping for her own goods and adding them to the basket, and Baby being given treats to snack on and store in Mama's basket, turns the story into a clever count along. Brooksbank's debut as illustrator is strong. The vibrant marketplace is filled with color, texture, and patterns created using a mixed-media palette. The opening and ending endpapers feature the same pattern that is on the wrap Mama uses to hold Baby on her back. VERDICT Young listeners will delight in getting to know Baby and his Mama as they shop throughout the market. Consider for first purchase in larger collections.-Lisa Kropp, Lindenhurst Memorial Library, NY

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2017
Baby is so charming that various vendors in this West African market gift him all sorts of yummies. Baby rides on Mama's back, held snug by a bright cloth wrap. Mama navigates the busy, colorful outdoor market, her woven basket balanced on her head. The text unrolls rhythmically in Atinuke's storyteller's voice: "Market is very crowded. Baby is very curious. Baby is so curious that Mrs. Ade, the banana seller, gives Baby six bananas." Baby eats one and puts the remaining bananas in Mama's basket. All the while Mama shops, unbeknownst to her, vendors continue to respond to Baby's transparent delight with five oranges, four "sugary chin-chin biscuits," three "roasted sweet corn," and two pieces of coconut. With each delicacy given, Baby eats one and puts the rest in the basket. When Mama sees all the extra foodstuffs she didn't buy, she's concerned, until the vendors reassure her: "We gave those things to Baby!" In her debut picture book, Brooksbank offers bright, bustling tableaux of shoppers, vendors, and goods. The smiling, all-black cast sort through myriad wares, while the text keeps up its rhythm, introducing both typical items bought in a West African market and a gentle lesson in arithmetic as Baby alternately snacks on and stashes his gifts. Indeed, no one will be able to resist this baby. (Picture book. 3-6)

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