Joosse (Lovabye Dragon) celebrates imagination and a grandmother’s creativity in this carefree story loosely based on her children’s song, “Hip Hooray Parade.” Framed as a guessing game, the book has a sense of playfulness that derives from freewheeling verse, rhyme and repetition, and nonsense words. Much to the delight of her granddaughter, the contents of Gramma’s basket are gradually revealed when she hangs up a sheet and uses props to create shadows that hint at the identity of various animals (“Gallump gallump./ Can you guess what’s coming up?”). A page flip shows the entire animal in full color and high spirits: an elephant with “a pink and purple stripy trunk” balances on a ball; rhinoceri tethered to orange balloons float in the air; and a kangaroo and her joey are “a-rooting and a-tooting” their blue kazoos. Yum (Mom, It’s My First Day of Kindergarten!) uses watercolors and linoleum block prints to create spare yet festive illustrations, which pop from the white backdrop. A jubilant parade led by Gramma and granddaughter caps off this rousing and affectionate romp. Ages 3–5. Illustrator’s agent: Sean McCarthy, Sheldon Fogelman Agency. (June)
Reviewed on: 04/29/2013
