Please, Baby, Please (Paperback)

by Spike Lee (Author), Tonya Lewis Lee (Author), Kadir Nelson (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Filmmaker Spike Lee and wife Tonya Lewis Lee join the ranks of other celebrity kids' book writers with their sweet, rhythmic read-along about the endless energy of a toddler blasting through a busy day.

The Lees' diapered dynamo starts early (the VCR reads 3:01 a.m.), with the little girl outlasting her mama sprawled out on the living room floor ("Go back to bed, baby, please, baby, please"). A breakfast of upturned Cheerios follows a few hours later ("Not on your HEAD, baby baby baby, please!"), then play time, a trip to the playground, dinner, and a bath ("Please don't splash, baby baby, please, baby!"). The fun repetition doesn't change up until the book's sweet close, as the curly-haired tyke somehow can't get to sleep ("Kiss me good night? Mama, Mama, Mama, please").

The Lees have as much or more success than their high-profile counterparts (Jerry Seinfeld: Halloween, John Lithgow: Marsupial Sue; and Jamie Lee Curtis: I'm Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self-Esteem), thanks in large part to their excellent choice of illustrator Kadir Nelson, whose work has appeared everywhere from Sports Illustrated to the New Yorker. Just as he did with Will Smith's Just the Two of Us, Nelson uses his enormous talent to inject energy and emotion into each richly colored, Rockwellian spread. (Baby to preschool) --Paul Hughes --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly
Many grownups will recognize the title as the comic carnal plea uttered by Lee (as Mars Blackmon) in his 1986 film, She's Gotta Have It. Now, the filmmaker and his wife/co-author, who have two children, have turned those words into a G-rated parental entreaty-directed at an inexhaustible toddler. "Go back to bed,/ baby, please, baby, please./ Not on your head,/ baby baby baby, please!" The large typography seems to writhe in vain supplication. The cherubic toddler, whose chocolate ringlets circle her head like restless electrons, tests her parents' patience in myriad ways, and Nelson (Just the Two of Us) has a knack for picking just the right angle. For the first of his handsome, burnished-toned acrylic spreads, readers share a toddler's eye-view. In the foreground are the feet of the prone, exhausted mother, a plastic ring from a stacking toy hanging from her left big toe, as a very wide awake baby plays horsey on her stomach. The clock on the VCR reads 3:01 a.m., and a bedtime video playing on the TV clearly makes no impact whatsoever. A tantrum when it's time to leave the playground, plus a chaotic meal and bath occasion other imploring phrases from the parents, whose presence Nelson suggests with just a foot or an arm outstretched to the youngster. But at book's end, the tables are turned: "Kiss me good night?/ Mama, Mama, Mama, please," says the girl, standing in the doorway of her mom and dad's room. The final wordless picture, a loving embrace, leaves no doubt of who loves this baby. Ages 2-5.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (March 21, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689834578
• ISBN-13: 978-0689834578
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 9.7 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #48,442 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My kids love this book!, October 19, 2002

By	Brett Cooper "Catholic at-home dad media lover" (Aurora, IL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Please, Baby, Please (Hardcover)

Rarely does my 2-year old sit through a reading of a whole book. This one he does! And my 3-year old as well. They love chanting "Please, baby, please!" and the other variations of that phrase throughout the book. The story is fun and something that both my kids and I can relate to - an adorable toddler getting into trouble. The combination of excellent writing and beautiful illustrations make this a huge hit with my family!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Again, Please, Mommy, Please?, June 3, 2003

By	Tiare Solorzano "Mother of 3, Child Developme... (Citrus Heights, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Please, Baby, Please (Hardcover)

This book has sweet, rhyming text with an Afican American flavor (Keep off the wall, please, baby, please!). The illustrations are incredibly realistic, and I especially appreciate the endearing expressions on the toddler in this story. Her expressions of delight, stubborn defiance, and wonder are familiar to anyone who has ever loved or parented a one-year old. Best of all, my own children (ages 1 1/2 and 3 1/2) love this story and ask to read it again and again (Please, Mommy, please!). If your own library lacks quality literature featuring ethnically diverse main characters, I highly recommend this one.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two Year Old Attention Grabber, January 21, 2003

By	Sheridan Smith "misheriamour" (Omaha, NE United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Please, Baby, Please (Hardcover)

My two-year old daughter and four year old nephew love this book! There are items to count, colors to name, and of course the wonderful rythym of "please, baby, please." The illustrations are wonderful! The child in the picture could easily be a boy or girl, and the daily routines of the child in the book are similar to any toddler child's busy day. I will share this book for a long time!