Tatyana Feeney Archives -

Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble & Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket by Tatyana Feeney

February 18, 2014
goodreadswithronna
Ages 1 and up, Ages 1-3, Animals - Baby Animals, Animals - Rabbits, Children's Book Reviews, Children's Books > Social Situations > Family Life > New Experiences, Dolls & Toys & Puppets, Emotions & Feelings, Family & Relationships, Family - New Baby, Family - Parents, Family - Siblings, Humorous Stories, Humorous Stories, Juvenile Fiction, Juvenile Fiction - Family Juvenile Fiction - Animals

A Delightful Double Dose of Tatyana Feeney!
Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble & Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket,
both reviewed by MaryAnne Locher.

Little-Frogs-Tadpole-Trouble-jpg — Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble written and illustrated by Tatyana Feeney, Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2014.

Tatyana Feeney wows us again with her simple brand of illustrating and storytelling in Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble (Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers, $16.99, Ages 1-3).

The universal tale of a new baby (or in this case, nine tadpoles) taking all of mommy and daddy’s attention from big brother (or in this instance, Little Frog) will delight older siblings, whether boys or girls.

We all know newborns don’t do much, but require oodles of attention from their parents. So it is when Little Frog suddenly finds himself the big brother to nine tadpoles. They can’t build towers, they can’t play the drums, and they can’t even jump! All they can do is take mommy and daddy’s time away from Little Frog, who is resentful of missing story time and goodnight kisses from his parents.

Then, one day the tadpoles grow into little frogs themselves becoming perfect playmates for their big brother. Little Frog decides having siblings isn’t so bad after all, and that it makes his family better than ever. Little Frog becomes the best big brother and one youngsters can relate to.

A companion book for Feeney’s other works: Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket (see below) and Little Owl’s Orange Scarf, Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble is the perfect book when a new baby is brought into the family.

Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket written and illustrated by Tatyana Feeney, Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers.

Here’s a book for all of you parents out there with little ones who have an attachment to a blanket, stuffed animal, or other inanimate object. You are not alone! Who hasn’t tried to sneak a sour smelling “doggie” into the washer? How many times have you heard of the dad cajoling the night janitor to let him into the preschool to retrieve the “bunny” left in a cubby, just so his daughter could go to sleep, or seen the dirty, frayed, and much loved blanket dragging behind a toddler in the grocery store? Tatyana Feeney, author of Little Owl’s Orange Scarf and Little Frog’s Tadpole Trouble, has enchanted us again with Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket and captured one of the cutest and at the same time most frustrating, loves of wee ones: the security blanket.

Small Bunny’s Blue Blanket (Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers, $6.99, ages 1-3 ) is released this time as a board book, just perfect for tiny hands to hold. With simple text and illustrations in watercolor and ink, it will be enjoyable for the youngest of “readers.”

Small Bunny and his blue blanket are inseparable. They swing together, play in the sand together, and even paint together. Just as bunnies get dirty and need a bath, so do blankets. At bath time, Small Bunny tries hiding from Mother, but she finds him and his blue blanket. After giving Small Bunny a bath, she insists on washing blue blanket too. Small Bunny counts the minutes until it is done washing and drying, which to him feels like an eternity. Mother is happy with the blanket and says it’s “just like new.” Small Bunny doesn’t like “new” and goes about swinging, painting, and playing with his blue blanket until it’s just the way it was before.

Little Owl’s Orange Scarf by Tatyana Feeney

October 28, 2013
goodreadswithronna
Ages 4-8, Children's Book Reviews, Emotions & Feelings, Juvenile Fiction

MaryAnne Locher reviews Little Owl’s Orange Scarf

Cover image of Little Owl's Orange Scarf by Tatyana Feeney — Cover image of Little Owl’s Orange Scarf by Tatyana Feeney from Knopf Books for Young Readers 2013.

Whenever someone asks me, “What’s your favorite color?” I always give the same answer: ANYTHING but GREEN! I can’t imagine how I would feel if I didn’t get to pick out my clothes, or even worse, was forced to wear a color I didn’t like. This is exactly what many parents do when they don’t guide their children to make their own choices. In Little Owl’s Orange Scarf (Knopf Books for Young Readers, $16.99, ages 4-8), written and illustrated by Tatyana Feeney, it is precisely what mother owl does when she makes Little Owl wear an itchy, too long, very orange scarf.

Little Owl comes up with some creative ways to misplace his scarf, but mother owl is just as good at finding it. But, when Little Owl’s class takes a trip to the zoo, the scarf is left behind despite Mother’s efforts to recover it.

Mother, being a wise old owl, decides to include Little Owl when she makes him a new scarf. He goes to the yarn store with her and even gets to pick out the color. The finished product is soft, just the right length, and NOT orange. Little Owl and Mother are both happy. At the end of the story we discover that the orange scarf is being put to good use by a certain long necked creature at the zoo.

The sparse text and simple illustrations combine to make a great picture book. Parents and children alike should get a hoot out of Little Owl’s Orange Scarf.