ACCESS DIGITIZED EDITION
Guide/Reviews Database
PRESCHOOL
Reich, Susanna

Pass the Baby

32 pp. | Holiday/Porter | October, 2023 | Trade ISBN 9780823450855 $18.99 | Ebook ISBN 9780823457311 $11.99
(2) PS Illustrated by Raúl Colón. Reich offers up a rhythmic, rhyming celebration of family, particularly the family's youngest member: "Call the guests to gather round, / grab a chair and take a seat. / Baby's fussing, must be hungry. / Hurry up, it's time to eat!" While this multiethnic, multiracial extended family cooks a special meal of enchiladas, ravioli, and black-eyed peas, they pass the baby from person to person--hugging, playing, and bouncing. The illustrations have their own rhythm, flipping from left to right on consecutive spreads with periodic full-bleed crowd scenes that encourage lingering. The kaleidoscopic use of color and layering of media lend depth, emphasizing the family's love and joy. Details such as Doggie scarfing up crumbs, a picture knocked askew, and Grandma looking irritated capture a mildly controlled chaos that will be familiar to many readers. It's lovely, too, to see the family gathering for no particular reason other than to be together. When the coffee spills and Baby dumps the sugar bowl on her doll's head, dinner has reached its inevitable conclusion. "Everybody grab a napkin. / Baby's made a great big mess!" The adults are done in, struggling to keep their eyes open, but Baby's ready for another helping.
Reviewer: Adrienne L. Pettinelli | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

RELATED 

PRESCHOOL

The Farmer and the Circus
by Frazee, Marla
PRESCHOOL

Bird House
by Gómez, Blanca
PRESCHOOL

The Crow and the Peacock
by Fernihough, Jo
PRESCHOOL

Something's Wrong!
by John, Jory
PRESCHOOL

Grandpa Across the Ocean
by Yum, Hyewon
More

Get connected. Join our global community of more than 200,000 librarians and educators.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.

ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER?