The Children’s Book Review | August 16, 2016
First Stories: A Fairy Tale Board Book Series
Illustrated by Dan Taylor
Age Range: 1 and up
Board Book: 8 – 10 pages
Publisher: Silver Dolphin Books (2017)
What to Expect: Simplified Fairy Tales, Push/Pull/Slide Pages, Transformations
These books grab the reader by the cover! As the reader pulls the tab you see the transformation of the main character before even opening the book. Cinderella changes from her dirty smock to a beautiful ball gown. Beauty and the Beast become a royally handsome couple. Rapunzel’s hair gets cut yet the Prince still yearns for her.
The interactions of these board books only enhance the re-telling of these famous fairy tales in a more simplified, child-friendly version. The double, full-page spreads by Dan Taylor enhance even the smallest details. For example, the rose, being the most dominant image in the tale of Beauty and the Beast, is incorporated in some way on almost every page of the story. Other images of small, colorful animals can also be found throughout the pages as they help the protagonist through their trials and tribulations that results in a happily ever after story. The push/pull/slide tabs are used on each page as it shows the result of what happens next in the story and the result of the magic that has occurred.
Fairy tales, which ironically were not even written for children in the 1800s and earlier, have become pinnacle teaching tools in our society to teach morals and lessons. As parents and teachers, we can begin to introduce these ideas to children as young as toddlers. These abbreviated fairy tales are presented in these interactive board books to attract the kid in all of us and maybe we might just learn a thing or two from it as well.
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About the Illustrator
Dan Taylor has always had a passion for illustration and, since graduating with an illustration degree, has been working for many years as a freelance artist on a variety of projects. Much of his inspiration comes from love of 1950s and ’60s design, and his heroes include Mary Blair, Alexander Girard, and Charles and Ray Eames. Dan works in a number of different media, including traditional painting techniques combined with digital. He obsessively collects mid-20th century and Scandinavian furniture, drinks tea by the gallon, and lives with a mischievous little dog named Bertie.
First Stories: A Fairy Tale Board Book Series was reviewed by Anna C. Iacovetta, Ph.D.. Discover more books like First Stories: A Fairy Tale Board Book Series by following along with our reviews and articles tagged with Animals, Books About Faith, and Spirituality.