Penguins love their abc's

The six penguins from Penguins Love Colors return to go on an alphabet hunt, "but did the little penguins even know all the letters of the alphabet?" asks Aspinal. "Do you know?" The penguins' mother places objects corresponding to each letter in the snow, and Aspinal's high-energy cartoons show the penguins goofing around with each of them, often in extreme close-up. Questions for readers ("Which color flower do you like best?") and commentary from the young penguins ("Wheeeeeeee!" shouts Violet, rolling down a hill inside the subject of "t is for tire") break up the recitation of letters and objects, while dialing up the story's exuberance. The objects themselves will be familiar to many young children (jump rope, key, lock) and the book's unflagging energy should make for raucous read-alouds. Ages 3-5. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Penguins play with the ABCs.Six penguinsTiger Lily, Tulip, Dandelion, Bluebell, Violet, and Broccolilove to play games with the alphabet. Mama Penguin has hidden all the letters in the snow with a clue above each one, turning the hunt into a guessing game with questions directed to readers. Beneath (surprise) a stalk of broccoli, penguin Broccoli finds the letter B for his name. "Do you know the first letter of your name?" Dandelion finds flowers, proclaiming a special love for the yellow ones. "Which color flower do you like best?" The roly-poly, black-and-white penguins with orange beaks and feet have wide, completely round eyes and big, neon-colored glasses. The only distinction among them is the color of the glasses, which matches their names. The vocabulary explored is for the most part common: there's Q for question mark, R for radish, U for their lucky underpants (they'll help find the rest of the letters, though what makes them lucky is not explained), Y for yo-yo, and Z for zucchini. Once they've found all the letters, how will they get them back to Mama? In a wheelbarrow, of course. What will she make for dinner? Alphabet soup! Young listeners learning their ABCs will enjoy both the interactivity and the penguins' antics. (Picture book. 2-5) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.