Go, Shapes, Go!

PreS-Gr 1--Pulp painting and collage art prevail in this creative game. On the first spread, a motorized mouse figure instructs shapes--a small arc, triangle, oval, large arc, circle, two small ovals, two tiny circles, two big rectangles, two thin rectangles, and a square--to rearrange themselves piece by piece to form a monkey. Mouse and Monkey accidentally collide, and the pieces assemble into a cat, then quickly return to the intended form. Fleming's active verbs (bounce, slide, slither, flip) create verbal energy to reflect the visual fun that keeps fresh with varying colored backgrounds. Readers can seek and find the shapes on each page, and assembling them in different ways creates an engaging interactive experience.--Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Tiny paper-collage Mouse gives various cut-paper shapes their marching--and rolling, bouncing, and slithering--orders in Fleming's (Underground) celebration of concepts and perception. With oval wheels that give the impression of a windup mouse, the speedy rodent zooms across Fleming's bold handmade paper backgrounds, directing the shapes on how to assemble themselves: "Slide, SQUARE, and start the show! Bounce, OVAL, up and down.... Flip, thin RECTANGLES. Don't break!"). When each shape has played its part to form a new whole, the resulting monkey looks ready to play. However, in his exuberance, Mouse crashes into the monkey, sending the shapes scattering. And when the rallying cry "SHAPES, find your places!" comes, the paper pieces take on a spirit of their own, reassembling into, not a monkey, but another animal that has Mouse on the run. Though the story reads as a bit scattered, readers will enjoy joining in the puzzlelike fun, guessing what the shapes are forming and imagining how they might reconfigure. The shapes themselves, snipped from decorative handmade paper, are labeled, helping to introduce or reinforce readers' familiarity with them. Ages 4-8. (Oct.)

Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Pulp painting and collage art prevail in this creative game. On the first spread, a motorized mouse figure instructs shapes—a small arc, triangle, oval, large arc, circle, two small ovals, two tiny circles, two big rectangles, two thin rectangles, and a square—to rearrange themselves piece by piece to form a monkey. Mouse and Monkey accidentally collide, and the pieces assemble into a cat, then quickly return to the intended form. Fleming's active verbs (bounce, slide, slither, flip) create verbal energy to reflect the visual fun that keeps fresh with varying colored backgrounds. Readers can seek and find the shapes on each page, and assembling them in different ways creates an engaging interactive experience.-Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA—School Library Journal "September 10, 2014 "