ALL THE COLORS/DE COLORES
Canticos Bilingual Nursery Rhymes
Written and Illustrated by Susie Jaramillo
Encantos Media Studios

5/26/2020, Age 0—5
8” x 7”: 24 Pages, ISBN:  978-1-945635-27-4 (R)
6” x 6”: 12 Pages, ISBN: 978-1-945635-36-6 (L)

Genre:  Children’s Board Book, Nonfiction
Themes: Colors, English-Spanish, Rhymes

Synopsis

Beloved by kids, parents, and educators, Canticos is the #1 bilingual preschool brand. The Emmy-nominated, award-winning series is proud to introduce the Canticos Bilingual Nursery Rhymes collection. All The Colors / De Colores is brought to life in both English and Spanish, so your little chickies can learn all about colors in both languages. Bilingual is better!

Check out our bilingual videos at CanticosWorld.com (from back cover of 6” x 6” format)

Opening Sentences

“All the colors!
All the colors, they
brighten the hills
and fields in
the springtime.

¡De colores!
De colores se visten
los campos en
la primavera.

Why I like All the Colors/De Colores

All the Colors/De Colores is an English-Spanish bilingual board book for infants and toddlers. There are two versions available. One is the stand size board book, 6” x 6,” while the other is a larger 8 ‘ x 7” reversible book with English on one side and the Spanish version on the other. Flip the book from front to back changes the language.” After the poem, inspired by traditional Mexican nursery songs, iconic Canticos characters help introduce each color.

This is where the two formats differ the most. The larger 8” x 7” opens to either the English version or, flipping the book over, the Spanish version. This unique cover has a magnetic  hold keeping the pages securely held. The pages have an accordion fold that mashes the two versions into a working board book. The lift-a-flaps each hide a different color (red/rojo, orange/naranja, yellow/amarillo, green/verde, blue/azuk, and purple/morado).

The 6” x 6” format contains the exact same story, characters, colors, and illustrations as it’s larger companion. In this smaller version, perfect for the smallest of hands to open and carry around, there are two distinct differences. First, the colors are presented in both English and Spanish on the same page. On top of a lift will be the English word for that color, (such as red) and then the Spanish word is found by lifting the flap (such as rojo).

The other difference is an ownership page or a “This book belongs to/Este libro pertenece a.” Here children, if they can spell their own name, or a parent, can place the child’s name on the line above a single iconic chickie. This is an important page. It gives children ownership of the book. I still have the Dr. Seuss books I wrote my name in (though it didn’t have a special place for a name).

Both books contain beautiful illustrations with vibrant colors that make the characters pop. Many of the characters will be familiar to toddlers who watch Canticos on Nick Jr. This includes the three chickies (Ricky, Nicky, and Kiki), Pin Pon’s Elephant Benji, Lili a purple spider, and Sammy a brown bunny. There are also colorful birds, fish, and butterflies. Spreads are adorned with flower fields and other outdoor nature settings.

The highlight is the central spread. Laid flat, thanks to ingenious engineering, this spread shows children a big, bold rainbow that appears to begin at a bright blue pond and end just behind those three iconic Canticos chickies. This is also where the poetry ends. The remaining spreads are for the colors and the lift-a-flaps.

I like the use of the flaps for a couple of reasons, plus they are just fun! One, children get used to opening the flaps yet are often still surprised by what lies under it, whether a different color, shape, or in this case, a word. It really makes no difference, as children see these flaps as surprises and enjoy opening them up. Lift-a-flaps bring a third sensation to children. They get a visual sensation from the bright, beautiful illustrations, a hearing sensation from listening to a parent read the words, and now a tactile sensation from lifting the flaps. Seems like a board book with flaps, or other interactive feature, makes for the perfect infant/toddler book.

All the Colors/ De Colores is the first in a series of reversible board books, each with a companion smaller 6” x 6” version for young children not ready to carry the larger 8” x 7” around. Young children will be fond of these special board books, especially fans of the Canticos series on Nick Jr. Parents will love these books for teaching a second language to their child when their little brains are like sponges, taking in everything like the little geniuses they are.

Favorite Spread

All of the spreads are fantastic! If pushed to choose a favorite, it would be the second of the three poem spreads. On this spread is Pin Pon’s Elephant Benji (you’ll meet Pin Pon at a later date) a blue bird and a yellowish-red bird. On top of the Elephant’s head sits Lili, a small purple spider, which frankly, I could do without (that’s just my dislike of spidery characters). Maybe if I had seen a purple spider when a toddler, I would like spiders. Lili is cute, if an eight-legged kind  of way. (Ew! No.) Anyway, like all the spreads, this one is beautiful and bright with amazing colors and characters, including the smiling Benji.

Illustrations Rendered in digitally.

Available at Amazon 8” x 7” format         6” x 6” format 

ALL THE COLORS/DE COLORES. Copyright © 2020 by Susie Jaramillo. Published by Encantos Media Studios, New York, NY.

 

Copyright © 2020 by Sue Morris/Kid Lit Reviews. All Rights Reserved
[632 word count-review only]

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