Alison Lester, Hello Little Babies, ABC Books/HarperCollins, 1 Dec 2016, 32pp., $24.99 (hbk), ISBN: 978 0733330414
Hello Little Babies is a delightful book that follows six little ones through their early exploration, sleeping, eating, playing and moving, as each does in their different ways. It’s a simple book, highlighting the familiar things any young baby/toddler will understand and probably do.
I particularly enjoyed the author’s use of a diverse set of babies. Now that I have two young 18-month nephews, I tend to view the success of such books through their eyes. While reading this to one of them, I turned to the page showing the six babies in their cots and asked him to point out his two cousins – and he did. But, what you should know is that his family is half Asian and half Indian, so the cousins I asked him to point out in the book were Asian and Indian, which he correctly identified. All children should see themselves reflected in books for them, so it’s very refreshing to see images of babies he could easily identify as part of his own diverse family.
Author/illustrator Alison Lester tells a lovely, diverse tale in this, the simplest of books. Families like mine, which are a diverse mix, wholeheartedly appreciate it.
Reviewed by Verushka Byrow
- Read Kay Oddone’s review of Hello Little Babies
