ALA Booklist

Carle's signature strong collages are put to good use in this book about movement. In each two-page spread, a child is paired with an animal, and kids are invited to make the same movement as the duo. Usually, the movement is one that comes naturally to the animals--for instance, an elephant stomps its feet, and so does a girl with braids; a gorilla thumps its chest, and so does a young boy. (Sometimes the connection is more tenuous, such as the alligator wiggling its hips.) The oversize art set against expanses of white will intrigue young children, who will enjoy both seeing the art and doing their own movements. The book will work well in story hours: a bit of wiggling and thumping will make a pleasurable break in the listening. Most libraries will want to shelve this with picture books. (Reviewed April 15, 1997)

Horn Book

Can you turn your head like a penguin? Raise your shoulders like a buffalo? Thump your chest like a gorilla? Carle's boldly colored collages on white backgrounds exaggerate each animal's movements and lend this 'animal-aerobics' approach to exercise visual as well as physical fun.

Kirkus Reviews

Carle (Little Cloud, 1996, etc.) takes as his premise that animals don't have to go to the gym—their natural movements give them plenty of exercise. I am a giraffe and I bend my neck. Can you do it?'' asks the animal of the child.I can do it!'' is the invariable reply. If readers participate in the gestures shown on every page, they'll get something of a work-out, for the analogies are good: foot-stomping elephants, clapping seals, and shoulder-hunching buffalo are enticingly imitatable. The book's large size and bold, brightly colored animals make it ideal for story hours. Unusual for Carle—and highlighted by the emphasis on action—is the stiffness of the collages: Neither children nor animals convey a sense of motion, but appear locked into place. Linda Lowery's Twist With a Burger, Jitter With a Bug (1995) inspires similar participation, but is a more rhythmic and vivacious book. (Picture book. 4-8)"

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Keeping both text and graphics to a minimum, Carle proves once again just how effective simplicity can be. In these collages, a playful hodgepodge of shapes, patterns and textures pop out from clean white backgrounds to show an energetic cast of animals and children engaged in friendly dialogue. On each spread, a creature introduces itself, moves a particular part of its body (sequences go from """"head to toe"""") and invites a child to do the same (""""I am a penguin and I turn my head. Can you do it?""""). In each case, the youngster cheerfully declares """"I can do it!""""-and does. In several instances, Carle creates an uncanny similarity between the child's stance or features and those of the animal. In a refreshing twist, human and animal characters reverse roles in the final scene, as a barefoot child wiggles his toe and asks a parrot if it can do the same. The colorfully plumed fellow obliges, of course, as will readers, especially those on the younger edge of the targeted age span. In fact, they'll eagerly clap, stomp, kick and wriggle their way through these pages from start to finish. Ages 4-8. (Apr.)

School Library Journal

Gr 3-4-The workings of the human body are explained, not from head to toe as the title claims, but through a cumulative voyage through various systems (excluding reproduction). Beginning with the skeleton and progressing through the joints; the muscles; the brain and nervous system; the organs; and skin, hair, and nails, the text gives a clear, age-appropriate sense of how the body accomplishes its daily functions. The illustrations, although cartoonlike and simplified, work well as maps, color-coded and keyed to information so that children are able to navigate the physical body through the text and art. Most systems have an experiment attached-testing taste buds, creating a robotic hand, making a hinge joint or a muscle, seeing a lung work-that can be undertaken in classrooms or alone, with minimum adult supervision. Explanations are clear, straightforward, and breezily conversational; many sections include trivia bullets as interest points. Although without some of the extravagant graphics of some titles in this genre-no flaps, pop-ups, or plastic overlays-this is a welcome addition in a field that, while crowded, is also of never-ending interest.-Dona Ratterree, New York City Public Schools Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.