From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2—Penguins at the zoo lead predictable lives—swimming, eating fish, playing penguin games, looking at people—until the day they discover a camera on a rock. After they have dented it and pushed all the buttons, one little bird realizes what it is and tells the others to smile at it, which they do. Then all of the little penguins take pictures of each other until the camera stops working. The zookeeper finds it the next morning and returns it to the little girl who lost it. Luckily she loves penguins and does not mind that they "pecked it a bit." When the photos are developed, five foldout pictures show the penguin fun. The cartoon style of these pastel illustrations is as light and playful as the text. The sweet faces show a lot of expression, while the aqua and purple backgrounds highlight their antics. Children will enjoy the penguins' photos, and they will delight in the story whether they read it themselves or listen to it.—
Mary Jean Smith, Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
For young children who love penguins or those who like to take pictures, Pichon’s new book offers a pleasingly silly story. Pichon depicts her penguins as happy zoo creatures who enjoy looking at the people who come to look at them. One day, a little penguin notices a camera that has been left behind. Delighted, he asks the other penguins to line up, face him, and say “FISH!” After they recover from “bug eyes,” the birds ham it up for the camera and discover that they all like to be photographed. Then a nice zookeeper finds the camera and returns it to its young human owner. The last spread reveals the developed pictures, which feature a variety of zoo animals, and then, in a foldout flap, the penguins in all their poses. The playful format, which includes a sketchbook page of penguin’s daily activities, matches the cheerful tone in the words and artwork, and the penguins' collective good cheer will resonate with young kids. Preschool-Kindergarten. --Abby Nolan
