(3) K-3 Illustrated by Edward Miller. After introducing the special quadrilateral known as a square, Adler and Miller's latest collaboration veers off on a surprising and completely worthwhile tangent to explore, in depth, how a quadrilateral's angles always add up to 360 degrees. The usual suspects--rectangles, parallelograms, rhombuses, trapezoids, kites--are then defined. Engaging activities and easy-to-understand illustrations make this a solid follow-up to Circles and Triangles. Glos.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(3) K-3 Master Math series. Illustrated by Jo Samways. Clear and colorful, these introductory math books feature hands-on and picture-based activities using the Singapore math approach, in which children progress from concrete to pictorial to abstract understanding of concepts. The content is engaging and pedagogically progressive; many important activities (especially those requiring manipulatives) are described in "Parent and Teacher Guidance" sections, making the series best suited for classroom or homeschool use. Review covers these Master Math titles: Get in Shape, Get to Know Numbers, Measure Up, and Super Calculations.

Reviewer: Tanya D. Auger

(3) PS Illustrated by Edward Underwood. "Big box / Little box / HUGE box / Tiny box." So begins this look at boxes and the gray cat who can't get enough of them. While the book's narrow focus will appeal most to cat lovers, Underwood's visually pleasing pencil, ink, and computer-assisted collage illustrations make each box look snazzy. The book concludes with a cute (literal) game of cat and mouse.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS Pixar Animation Studio Artist Showcase series. The Pixar animator's simple story involves Circle and Box, who want to "do something together." Circle jumps, but Box can only sit; Circle tries to sit but rolls away. After nearly ending the story prematurely ("'The end?' 'This can't be the end'"), they combine their singular talents. Hartline gives an impressive amount of expression to his smiley-faced, stick-limbed sphere and cube.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(3) PS Illustrated by Serge Bloch. The strength of a man's sneeze sends Circle rolling and Oval rocking (bypassing Rectangle, fortunately), and so on until Circle pops on Triangle's point, after which the chain reaction continues. Equally graceful as the rhymes are the simple collage and ink illustrations showing the bespectacled, stick-limbed shapes collaborating on this book-length geometry problem.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini. Geometric shapes are compared, in simple rhyming stanzas, to shapes found in traditional Islamic architecture, art, and rituals. Minarets are cone-shaped, the Ka'aba is a cube, and so on. Mixed-media illustrations are ornate and richly colored; depicting a different country on each spread, the pictures showcase the ethnic diversity within Islam yet focus on traditional (and sometimes archaic) attire. An author's note is appended. Glos.

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam

(3) PS Medina embellishes color photos of sweet treats to create forest-animal likenesses meant to teach children about shapes: Macaron Owl represents a circle, Lemon Tart Goldfinches represent triangles, etc. Between this sumptuous book and Medina's two previous food-centric offerings, ABC Pasta and 1 Big Salad, kids can enjoy a balanced diet of basic concepts. A recipe for chocolate-covered strawberries is appended.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS In each of sixteen minimalist spreads, a labeled object (e.g., "an orange") is introduced on the left-hand page; on the right, it's shown in an altered state (e.g., the orange is now "a planet," its stalk hovering like a star). This small-scale concept book (first published in France) succeeds with its grand ambition to show readers that simple tweaks can make a big difference.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Bob Shea. Square is a bookworm; Circle likes to "bounce into the action." Nevertheless, they've been best friends "since they were a dot and a speck." When flashy newcomer Triangle arrives, a "wedge" is driven between them, as described in Colleen's clever, math-centric text. Shea's geometric illustrations give the spindly-legged characters lots of personality.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) PS Back matter situates this simply presented, graphically crisp, and straightforward concept book in the Art Deco District of Miami Beach. Skillful close-up photographs of architectural elements introduce numbers from one to ten, shapes (including more complex ones such as octagons and zigzags), and colors, culminating in an open-ended identification game. Reminiscent of Tana Hoban's work, the book feels both vintage and timeless.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin

(4) K-3 Crayola Concepts series. These simple concept books serve as introductions to their topics as well as to nonfiction conventions. Crayon-bright pages pop with colorful graphics and photos that illustrate concepts in the texts; some volumes are more focused than others. Despite its obvious marketing for the Crayola brand, overall the series is an engaging foray into basic early-elementary subjects. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. Review covers these Crayola Concepts titles: The Crayola Counting Book, The Crayola Patterns Book, The Crayola Shapes Book, The Crayola Comparing Sizes Book, The Crayola Opposites Book, and The Crayola Sorting Book

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) PS Basic Concepts series. Illustrated by Elliot Kreloff. This cheerful series focuses mainly on math (patterns, shapes, numbers) and color concepts. Not-So-Right explores individual differences (with some success). The bright, childlike drawings feature a diverse cast; the simple texts will appeal to preschoolers, teachers, and parents. Review covers these titles: Big Box of Shapes, Colors All Around, Count On It, Duck, Duck, Goose, and The Not-So-Right Day.

Reviewer: Cyrisse Jaffee

(3) PS In Play, a cheerleader-like omniscient narrator encourages red triangles, yellow squares, and blue circles as they collaborate to make a castle, a train, etc. In Reshape, readers are encouraged to guess what animals various colorful rectangles will form, while also practicing counting from ten dragonflies down to one dragon. Clean, modern-looking digital layouts illustrate these enthusiastic introductions to shapes. Review covers these titles: Shapes at Play and Shapes, Reshape!

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) PS This lift-the-flap book begins mysteriously, with an illustration of six keys. Six watercolor spreads follow, each showing an animal hidden by a cage's closed door--so that's what the keys are for! This ingeniously simple book's only text is the repeated "thanks" from each freed animal until the reader opens a final, keyless seventh flap, freeing a (hungry) snake: "AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Tired of numeral life, Three searches for another job, trying out ear bud, hair band, ship's anchor, sculpture, and more. When he discovers that the fair is closed because there are no three-tries-for-a-dollar games, three-legged races, triple-scoop ice cream cones, etc., he realizes his value and rejoins the other numbers. The story lacks energy, but graphically sophisticated scratchboard art encourages shape and number recognition.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden

(3) PS Two children put together various geometric shapes and suggest interesting images that can be created from each configuration: e.g., a rectangle balanced horizontally on a circle becomes--with some embellishments--"a lady with a fancy hat." Textures, bright colors, and patterns add pizzazz to the chunky geometric illustrations for this inviting book, which ends by challenging its audience to come up with their own suggestions.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) PS In Hopgood's introductory concept book for the youngest reader, spider Walter wants a less "wibbly-wobbly" web, but each time he weaves a new shape--triangle, square, etc.--the wind blows it away. Readers will be won over by Walter's (ultimately rewarded) tenacity and by Hopgood's clean, vital art, which manages to present a cuddlesome arachnid.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) PS Illustrated by Eiko Ojala. In this dual-purpose concept book, short perky rhymes link twelve shapes to typical month-specific activities: a heart in February, a baseball diamond in June, etc. Two children and a dog demonstrate each activity. Some associations are forced and the rhyme sometimes falters, but cheerful solid-color illustrations, embellished with eye-catching three-dimensional shading, ably support the concept.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Bryan Collier. This engaging volume, vibrantly illustrated by Collier in watercolor and collage, encourages children to identify the various shapes of a city. A young African American girl is the guide, and her obvious joy in her city is contagious. Murray's rhyming couplets scan well, making the rhythm easy to follow. Teachers seeking books for their math unit on shapes need look no further.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2016

(3) PS Illustrated by Ingrid Fiksdahl King. "I'm round" announces a white circle and "I'm red" says a red swath, followed by "What can I be?" Illustrations of an apple and other round red objects provide answers, after which readers are prodded to imagine combining additional shapes and colors. The book's bravura illustrations (e.g., overlapping kite strings conjure a mobile by Alexander Calder) may inspire not just imagination but artistic output.

Reviewer: Nell Beram