Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Welcome to Mamoko
Board Picture Book
For ages 5 to 10
Candlewick Press, 2013 ISBN: 978-0763668914
Tonight they are holding a Town Carnival in Mamoko and everyone who lives in the town wants to go to the event, but is that going to be possible? Let’s find out.
First of all you need to meet the colorful cast of characters who appear in this story. In each case we see what they look like and are told a little about them. There are the members of the Hop family, and we are told that something is going to “throw them for a loop” on their way to the carnival. Old Mrs. Full-Wool lives life to the fullest and apparently she is going to have some adventures today. Cecily Beak is going to take her chick for a stroll and no doubt they are going to see all kinds of interesting things. Pamela Snout is a pig who likes to “look her best” and she is going to be invited to a party. These are just a few of the characters who appear in this book, and it is your job to “follow the adventures of each of these characters in every scene.” We are also invited to look for certain things in the scenes and to identify “which things look out of place.”
In the first scene it is morning and the residents in a neighborhood are getting started with their day. The little Hop bunnies are still asleep, and Pamela Snout is drinking a hot drink and looking out of her apartment window. Edwin Drench the giraffe is running out of his home and he is wearing a red hard hat. Magical Miss Chub is moving, and she has a blue package that she is getting ready to carry out to the moving (pickup) truck. Some cats are loading up the truck with boxes.
When we turn the page we find ourselves in a park. The Hop family is walking in a line along a path. Pamela Snout is here too, and poor Edwin Drench is running at full speed. Magical Miss Chub is getting a lift in the mover’s pickup truck and she has her package with her.
The next scene takes us into town. Here you will find the shops, the town square, the fire station, the car wash, and many other businesses. Magical Miss Chub’s package has fallen off the pickup truck and it looks as if she hasn’t noticed. Pamela Snout is trying on a new pair of shoes, and Edwin Drench appears to be heading for the fire station.
Will someone retrieve Magical Miss Chub’s package and will the rest of the characters be able to have a good time at the festival?
With seven detail-filled scenes to explore and a splendid cast of characters to watch, this picture book will delight readers of all ages, especially those who like search-and-find titles. There are mysteries to solve and stories that unfold before our eyes as we turn the pages. Readers will have a grand time looking at the artwork and finding little details that are amusing, delightfully peculiar, or touching.
