Customer Reviews

Around the World with Mouk

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

FINALLY!

I'm so happy that there is a Marc Boutavant book published / translated for the US market and what a book! From what I understand this is Mr. Boutavant's first solo book, one that he has both written alone and illustrated and it is a great introduction to his whimsical illustration work!

Little kids (and adults alike!)will love poring over the art of each page, following Mouk's every single step in the various countries he visits. Mr. Boutavant leaves no corner unadorned, which invites the reader to gladly re-visit Mouk and his friends over and over!

I hope this book is successful enough in the US that his other books will be translated!

Ok I just saw/read/pored over this book and I don't know where to begin putting my excitement into words... I'm willing to bet you've never seen a book THAT colorful, THAT sweet and that happy. It's a blissful journey of Mouk through different lands and gives little details about the culture, geography, and foods of that area. It's a brilliant and delightful way to teach kids about different places on the globe. It's so thrilling, that I at my 33 years of age, will absolutely buy one not only for many of the kids I know, but also for myself. This could be a cool gift for a designer friend. It's so flawlessly executed that it will absolutely appeal to artsy, design-conscious adults. The stickers are through the roof as well... So much to play with! So much to learn!

I ordered this book for my almost 5 yr old daughter after reading about it in a parenting magazine. The book is visually interesting and each 2 page spread has one block of text that gives the overview of Mouk's travel experience in that location. Then there are a few little text bits within the illustrations that are a foreign word, the name of a local food or a short description (example:"it's raining bougainvillea blossoms").

Another reviewer thought this book would appeal to artsy, design-conscious adults, and I completely agree. Grown-ups will like it. But I'm not convinced that young kids will find it so engaging (I returned the book after we read through it). I've learned my lesson before with books and toys that I think are cool, artistic and educational, and my kids haven't been taken with it as I was. I found the book's illustrations pretty full of details as it was, and couldn't imagine layering the reusable stickers on top - there's no empty space. I found the text to be trying too hard to cram in cultural references, so it wasn't a narrative, it was more like a list - and for the age 4-8 crowd definitely bordering on pretentiousness. I was hoping that "Mouk" was going to be more like an around the world Richard Scarry book and for our family it wasn't.

The illustrations are fab, they remind me of those ultra -colorful & -busy Tokidoki patterns and so are visually congested for sure. The story is actually letters from Mouk, the main character, who visits many different places, like Madagascar, greece, japan, india and even NYC, so reading this can be a lot of fun and a culturally enriching experience...it can open up a little dialogue about ethnicities and differences in a friendly way.

The book itself is quite large and well-made, with thick, puffy covers and heavy, full-color glossy pages. This book will not fit in most child-sized bookcases.

My nearly six y.o. Daughter likes the stickers, which are actually repositionable but they're kind of translucent so you can see through them somewhat, which is kinda strange IMO.

This is a gorgeous book, Marc Boutavant is a stunning illustrator. This book has a nice fat puffy hard cover with thick glossy pages and comes with stickers. We got this four our girls when they were about 3 years old, mistake. We had to remove and hide the stickers so they didn't tear into them and use them up poorly, and the words were just not engaging to them, even at age 4 they are still not engaged by the text when read to them. Also important to note, we found that it is a little difficult to read the text (small text on dark colors on pages super busy crammed with lots of little images). I think this book is better for older kids who read well on their own. The idea behind it is great, and it is a little educational in terms of what other places are like. It was just not well suited for what we were/are after, an engaging picture book that we parents read to our little ones. I think this is still a very worthwhile book and I am glad we own it and the girls will enjoy a lot one day, they will have fun reading it, looking at the pictures almost like an I spy because there is much there to see on each page, and putting the stickers on the pages in the book, so I would recommend this book and would still buy it again, but just for slightly older kids.

We love MOUK and we are so happy that this title is now available in English! Here is a suggestion, if you love MOUK: you will be madly in love with another French character 'Barbapapa'! Barbapapa (meaning Cotton Candy in French) is both the title character, and name of the "species" of said character, of a series of children's books written in the 1970s by Annette Tison and Talus Taylor, who resided in Paris, France. You can still purchase the books and DVD's in Europe (or through Amazon.fr - available in French or Amazon.co.jp with DVD's available in French/English/Japanese, make sure to get a multi-region DVD player). The story is always educational and there is always a message: to protect the earth, the animals, nature. One of the most positive books for children ever created! Barbapapa was and still is a huge hit in France, Belgium and Japan. Unfortunately, Barbapapa was never really distributed in the USA. If you want to bring up your children with a positive and peaceful message, you should give Barbapapa a try! One of the most undiscovered gems in children's literature. Barbapapa is the best!

My 4.5 year old son is crazy about this book. The first time I gave it to him, he spent about an hour looking at it by himself. We later read it together and moved the stickers around. My only (very minor) complaint is that it is difficult to remove the vinyl stickers from the sticker sheet, so he had to ask for help with that. My child is a huge Richard Scarry fan. I don't think these illustrations are at the same level as Scarry's, but the level of detail is, so if you have a child who gets absorbed in books with multiple narratives on one page, this is the book for you.

This is a beautifully done book that is educational and exciting. Like the Richard Scarry books, there are all kinds of details on each page that make it possible to see new things every time you look. The colors are great and the details about each culture are interesting and not too complex for a child. Anything that gets an American child looking at a map of the world as early as possible is a good idea, but this makes it fun. And the stickers are a nice bonus. Great kids gift.

I gave my girls about 6 books each for Christmas, but they both tell me the story of Mouk's travels around the world is the best. My 6 year old just loves looking at the bright, detailed illustrations. The cultural references to each country while general, are easy for children to place and understand. A winner!

An excellent book for young kids, but appealing for other ages too. This is the story of Mouk, a little bear who goes on a trip around the world. The book emphasizes different cultures, customs, etc. It teaches a few words in different languages and the illustrations are very thoughtfully made - details that link across a busy, colorful page, that kids can discover as they look at it and understand it better each time.
I wish we had more books with Mouk available in English...
Makes a great gift too.