Welcome in Spring with a Good Book -- The Big Book of Words and Pictures by Ole Konnecke (Review)

 

Series: Gecko Press Titles

ISBN-10: 1-877579-05-X
ISBN-13: 978-1-877579-05-9

Pages: 22
Trim Size: 10 1/8 x 13 3/8
Reading Level: K

Interest Level: PreK-K
Ages: 1-5

Buy now for only $11.21. 

Summary:

This book, by the author of Anton Can Do Magic, is a large format board book of early concept words and pictures, full of charm and humor. Find the many small stories on each page—this board book has a huge amount of depth.

My Thoughts:

If there is one book to add to your child's book collection this year, make it this one.  Yes, this is a bold statement to make, but after you see this picture book firsthand, you will see why.  My daughter, Savannah, is only 22 months old, but is absorbing everything around her, like a sponge.  Each and every day, she is adding new words to her vocabulary, as well as associating things with words she hears.  She can point to the different parts of her body, when I ask her where her head, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, etc. is.  And, when we count to ten, she is able to stick her fingers up, as well as point to the numbers, when she seems them on the refrigerator or television.  As a parent to a young children, I am amazed at how much she is learning, and am always on the lookout for fun and educational books to share with her.

So, when I was sent a copy of this book to review, I couldn't wait to share it with her.  As I opened this oversized board board, I instantly fell in love with the setup.  Each page contained over a dozen illustrations, with is associated word under it, for children to enjoy and learn.  As I pointed to each illustration, I would say the word that went with it, as well as described it (ie. grey elephants, reading a book, etc.).  Savannah loved pointing to different illustrations and having me talk about it.  

Each page went dealt with a particular theme (ie. rooms in the house and items found in each, seasons, numbers, animals, outdoor locations, etc. Savannah's favorite page was the last one, in which is showed a lion and had the different parts of his body labeled.  Because she had already learned these words, she began to point them out on the lion and herself.  You should have seen how proud and happy she was of herself for knowing this.  Since receiving this book, I continue to use it only a daily basis as a teaching tool with Savannah.  Not only is she learning new words, but she is able to associate them to the illustrations in the book.  There have been a few occasions where I have been busy with her little sister, and forget to pull out this book and read to her.  When this happens, I always find Savannah sitting on the couch, flipping through the book and pointing out things and saying out loud what they are.  Moments like these, make me so proud of her and I admire her drive to want to learn about everything around her independently.

About the Author:

Ole Könnecke was born in 1961 and spent his childhood in Sweden. He now works as a freelance illustrator in Hamburg, Germany. He has won many awards, including the German Youth Literature award in 2005.

Disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book by the publisher in order to write up an honest review.  The views above are mine and mine alone.