BOOK REVIEW:
You know it is that time of the year again, when you visit
bookstores and you see adorable and irresistibly-cute movie-related
franchise stacked up at the children’s corner. Yes,
it is time to whip out that Christmas shopping list of yours.
This
year, we have an animated picture about singing and dancing
penguins earning big bucks in the cineplexes. And over at
the bookshops, there is this guide book which completes the
movie experience with its comprehensive rundown of the key
characters from the show.
Extremely
easy to read, this 48-page picture book features the different
species of penguins in the movie, as well as the dangerous
whales and the talkative seals.
Displayed
in gorgeous colours, this big book published by Dorling Kindersley
(DK), younger readers get to meet the individual characters
and read about their personalities and traits. Real photographs
of these beautiful animals are also included in the book to
allow the young ones to know how these species really look
like.
The
book also provides many fun nature facts that will bring smiles
to older readers.
Did
you know that if the mother penguin isn’t around when
her chicks need milk, the father can pacify the babies with
a special milk-like fluid he produces from his throat? Or
that orca whales are white underneath so that their prey cannot
see them when they look up into the sky?
These
tidbits will prove to be amusing, if not informative to the
casual readers.
If
there is one complaint about the book, it is the numerous
“fold-out” pages that got on this reviewer’s
nerves after a while. Sure, it is a smart way to reduce the
“actual” number of pages in the book, but it only
proved to be more of a hassle trying to fold out the inserts,
trying to see what “surprises” lie beneath them.
But
then again, this may be interactive and fun for the younger
readers, giving them a chance to engage in some enjoyment
in the process of reading and learning. If this lavish guide
book is published with that in mind, then we’d say it
has achieved its objectives. Adults are happy as long as their
young ones are happy.
After
all, it is the season to be merry.
CHOICE XCERPT:
“A real man will:
Fetch
you a fish – There’s nothing more romantic than
the boy of your dreams bringing you a slimy cod in his beak.
Make
romantic gestures – A really cool guy can do a fancy
dive and leave a trail of bubbles in the shape of a heart.
Follow
his heart – A real man will follow his own dreams, even
when everyone else seems to be against him. It takes bravery,
a strong heart and the love a beautiful woman!”
VERDICT:
Bring
the young ones to watch the movie. Buy this book for them
as a surprise present. Another year passes and another Christmas
gift is settled.
Review
by John Li
|
