Hap-Pea All Year (Peas)

The rhyming text is relaxed and sparse, conjuring up a lighthearted tone that matches the peas’ humorous antics. (A shoutout to LMNO Peas in June elicits a hearty chuckle.) An infectious, pea-sized romp. (Picture book. 2-8)

Copyright 2016 Kirkus Reviews, LLC Used with permission.

PreS-Gr 1—Baker's busy legumes are back and celebrating the months of the year in this bright and cheerful concept book. The peas introduce each month with rhyming metric and mention one special thing that normally occurs during that particular month. "Hap-pea July! Chase the fireflies./Roll out a sleeping bag, watch the sparkling skies." Halloween and Thanksgiving are both alluded to here, but the images in these spreads could also be interpreted as other celebrations, such as harvest festivals. February specifically addresses Valentine's Day, however, and March calls out St. Patrick's Day. Children will enjoy spending time looking at all of the small digitally illustrated peas and their adventures in each specific month. VERDICT With the traditional, spacious two-page format and minimal text, this volume should be a crowd-pleaser for storytimes as well as one-on-one reading. A general purchase for most libraries.—Brooke Newberry, La Crosse Public Library, WI

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Having conquered the alphabet (LMNO Peas, 2010), numbers (1-2-3 Peas, 2012), and colors (Little Green Peas: A Big Book of Colors, 2014), Baker's goofy spherical seeds return to revel in the seasons and holidays in this book of months."Hap-pea January! Let's get going. / Grab your mittens—hooray, it's snowing!" With this jubilant declaration, Baker's green veggies make merry in a snowy landscape, skiing with abandon, tobogganing by fours, and casting snowballs at one another. In the middle of this jamboree, a giant "January"—its letters colored in cool blues and purples—dominates the double-page spread. One conspicuous pea holding a "1" stands amid all the action. This particular legume acts as a guide of sorts, counting out the months as its round comrades partake in every seasonal change and holiday celebration. Each double-page spread hosts a month, from January to December, with bright and colorful digital artwork. Naturally, the big festive days make an appearance: Valentine's Day in February, Halloween in October. Baker also includes the end and beginning of the school year (June and September, respectively), casting summer as a joyous paradise. The rhyming text is relaxed and sparse, conjuring up a lighthearted tone that matches the peas' humorous antics. (A shoutout to LMNO-Peas in June elicits a hearty chuckle.) An infectious, pea-sized romp. (Picture book. 2-8)—Kirkus Reviews "9/1/16 "