ALA Booklist (Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2003)

The team that produced Catherine and Laurence Anholt's Big Book of Families offers this similarly designed volume celebrating young children. There are five broad sections--among them, How Little Children Feel and What Little Children Do. Within each are several spreads offering words, phrases, or short rhymes that serve as captions for cheerful watercolor-and-ink illustrations showing a multicultural array of little ones leaping about, having mishaps, dealing with feelings, creating, and just enjoying being kids: What I like is . . . / ice cream / a funny dream / my special cup / dressing up. Virtually every child will find something to relate to, whether it's a favorite activity or the emotional upheaval that comes with getting lost in a crowd. With 80 pages of engaging words and pictures to keep little ones occupied and learning about themselves and others, this book is a great bargain.

Horn Book (Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 CST 2004)

Each chapter in this compilation contains approximately half of the material from several of the Anholt's previously published picture books. The book includes selections from Here Come the Babies, What I Like, What Makes Me Happy, Kids, and Catherine and Laurence Anholt's Big Book of Families. The Anholts' drawings and sentiments are very childlike and appealing, but in this format the selections have substantially less cohesion and strength.

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

Gathering another quintet of previously published books, Catherine and Laurence Anholt's Big Book of Little Children by the husband-and-wife team, adapts material from books published between 1991 and 1998. The round-up surveys a range of topics, such as """"What do babies play with?"""" (the list includes """"Frizzy hair, saggy bear, Empty box, Daddy's socks"""") in a selection called """"Very Little Children"""" from Here Come the Babies. There are also some extended verse, as in a poetic portrait of """"Little Children's Families"""" from the duo's Big Book of Families: """"Mommy, mommy, sweet as honey, busy as a bee, Buzzing off to earn some money, Buzzing home to me."""" The airy watercolor-and-ink spot illustrations have enough level of knowing detail to prompt plenty of pointing and commentary. (Sept.)

School Library Journal

PreS-A collection of excerpts from the Anholts' Here Come the Babies (1993), What I Like (1998), What Makes Me Happy? (1996), Kids (1994), and Catherine and Laurence Anholt's Big Book of Families (1998, all Candlewick). The book is a compilation of a variety of feelings, thoughts, and ideas about children and their families, accompanied by crews of the Anholts' trademark youngsters with a variety of skin colors, hair types, and clothing styles. While the selections work well independently, there is no plot binding them together. The layout sometimes lacks variety, but the bright colors and detailed scenes add lots of appeal. Libraries owning the original titles will not need this volume.-Amy Lilien-Harper, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, CT Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.