Look & See: A Circus of Colors!

We first found this book in a little local bookstore, and I was shocked at how effective it is. For several years I had tried to find a good book that teaches color, but they almost all fall into the same pitfalls: several dull objects on the same page all in the same color with no story or theme (boring to read AND look at), or slightly more engaging books that refer to colored objects (green tree) which are lost in busy, multi-colored pictures (if I have to point out the specific object in a picture that is a particular color, I may as well grab any book and do the same thing). In A Circus of Colors, the author makes incredible use of tone- each new page is almost exclusively a giant wash of the same color, but so many different shades of it that it is still engaging and interesting and feels like a fuller palette. The die-cut adds to the interest as it's incorporated into the picture and story. Don't overestimate the book- it is still very, very simple. There will be no rising or falling action, climax, or protagonist, but it is a well-produced, simple board book with easily distinguishable colors, the thrill of holes to stick fingers through, good use of basic geometrical shapes, rhyme, and a cute theme to tie it all together. I highly recommend this book.