Your kids may be familiar with the names of some baby animals, like kittens and piglets. Sure, those are easy. Bonus points if they know calf or foal. But I’m willing to bet that they (and probably you, too!) have no idea what kind of animal young’un is called a leveret, or a puggle, or my favorite of the bunch, a cheeper. Thanks to Aaron Zenz’ latest picture book Chuckling Ducklings and Baby Animal Friends, my kids and I are newly informed and still giggling over the cuteness of these little ones.
With each page turn, young readers are introduced to a new baby animal, starting off with some that will probably be familiar. Giggles will likely ensue when multiple animals share the same name, as it did with my kids when we read the word “cub” four times on one page featuring a raccoon, a bear, a panda, and a tiger. Silly, right? Zenz even gets a little tricky when he shows both a baby female and male horse, which technically are both referred to as foals, but each has its own gender-specific name, too. (Do you know them?)
My kids have been long interested in birds, and the two-page spread that features a whopping eight baby birds, each sitting atop a parent, introduced several new words to all of us. (I’ll tell you that the cheeper is featured on this page, but I’m not giving away what it is!)
The text consists of only a few words on each page, introducing over 50 different animals, but the true delight is found in the illustrations. The animals ooze adorableness, and Zenz’s colored pencil artwork has total kid appeal. For families looking for a little giggly reading fun that introduces new words, and possibly even a few new animals, be sure to check out Chuckling Ducklings and Baby Animal Friends. And for you avid book blog readers, Aaron Zenz and his children regularly post at Bookie Woogie, where they have delightful conversations about children’s literature.
**The 5 Minutes for Books team are happy to be a part of Scholastic’s Parent Circle. Each month, one of our reviewers will select a book from that month’s Scholastic Book Club flyers. I selected Chuckling Ducklings and Baby Animal Friends from April’s Honeybee flyer.
We are happy to offer a paperback copy of this cute picture book as featured in the Scholastic book club flyer to one lucky reader. Leave a comment to enter, and we’ll announce our winner in our book column on 4/9.
The winner of How Not to Kill Your Baby is #49 Eileen.
5 Minutes for Books reviewer Dawn spends her days surrounded by her preschool students, and her evenings catching up with her own three kids. When she gets the chance, she blogs away at my thoughts exactly.
It would be a great book to win!
I would really like to have this book. It sounds so adorable.
I’d love to get this for my niece. trixpixel[at]gmail.com
This would be fun for my daughter. Cute!
My granddaughters would love this book. So cute!
I WOULD LOVE TO GIVE THIS AS A BIRTHDAY GIFT TO MY NEPHEW. HE WOULD EQUALLY LOVE IT AS WELL =)
my kids would like this
looks like a super cute book
sounds like a cute book thanks for chance to win
ABreading4fun [at] gmail [dot] com
I would love to get this book for my college age daughter Kate, I have always bought her books for her Easter basket since she was a little girl. With the help of these books she teaches preschool children and is working on her Masters degree in Special Education at George Mason in Va. She has always been a reader to herself and any children she has taught. She also teaches a chapter about farm animals where this would be very helpful she really goes all out makes barns out of boxes brings in little picked fences from garden trimming for fences and all her children in her class bring in stuffed animals to put by barn. This book would be a great educational benifit for her class room library.
ps really miss the Scholastic papers coming home since my Katie has grown up, wish there was a way I could still purchase through those specials.
Sure to be a winner with the kid’s.
What a nice book to read to your children.
It looks so cute. Would be a great present for my niece. Thanks 🙂
This is such a cute book. Thank you for the opportunity to win.
marianne dot wanham at gmail dot com
Looks like such a cute book! Thanks so much for the chance to win!
This looks like a cute book!
We would love to add this book to our collection. We love to read and are always looking for quality books
Thanks for the chance to win!
What a great spring time book to read.
We are crazy about books at our house and this one looks adorable and fun! 🙂
Thanks for the chance to win this for my preschool classroom. It would be especially nice to use with our unit on farm animals.
My son Jamison would love this!
Nice book, would be great for Easter too.
This book would be a great addition to my granddaughters’ “in process” book collection!
This is a real sweet book,and my granddaughter would love it. Please enter me. Thanks!
ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net
thanks debbie jackson
djackson1958 at hotmail dot com
What a cute story, please enter me.
I have 8 grandchildren ,7 of whom are under the age of 6 so this would be such a perfect book to keep at my house to read to them,they love for Mamaw to read to them
vlbelk(at)hotmail.com
My daughter would love this!
janemaritz at yahoo dot com
looks like a cute book
nannypanpan@gmail.com
Great for the little ones to read.
would love to win this cute book!
My niece and nephew are just crazy about ducks! This would be a perfect book for them.
thanks for this giveaway!
this book looks so cute
Thanks for adding your giveaway to my McLinky at http://www.frontporchreviews.com/2009/09/linky-giveaways-add-yours-here/ – stopping by from there.
Thanks for the giveaway.
What a great book to add to any home library! It’s informational, but also oh so much fun! Thanks!
Love Aaron Zenz books!
This would be a perfect book for my grandson to have fun with and learn.
Thank you for the chance. Another great giveaway!
My little grandson would love this!
pbclark(at)netins(dot)net
What a great story book for the kids.
I would love to share this with my two year-old grandson (an later with the one coming in October!) Just this weekend he became more ‘understandable’. Says “Gammaw” a lot; meows all the time (don’t know why!); is fascinated by “kitty” and “puppies”.
My kids would love this book!
This looks darling!
our princess loves animals and books and this I believe she would love
shopannies@yahoo.com
Sounds like a cute book for my nephew!
Sweet little book for the children.
Great animal picture book… My son loves animals.. Thanks for this information.
This sounds sooo cute.
Looks interesting. Oh my boys will love that!
It sounds like a great book with adorable artwork. I’d love to share it with my little ones!
This looks like a very cute book.
lkish77123 at gmail dot com
love to win this debbie jackson
djackson1958 at hotmail dot com
Cute book! Would love to read this!
Adorable! My son would love this book!
Would love to win!
This sounds like such a cute book. I’d love to win it for my granddaughter!
Brilliant! I want in! pretty please!
My kids would love this! Please count me in for the giveaway thanks!
Margaret
singitm(at)hotmail(dot)com
The illustrations are adorable ! so cute!!
My granddaughter would love it. Thanks for hosting!
Could the cover of this wonderful book be any cuter?!
I don’t think so… Baby animal books are always fun!
This would be such a fun book to read to my sons…
Many thanks to you!
Cindi
That looks adorable! We love the scholastic fliers every month and would love to win the Chuckling Ducklings. 🙂 zucchinisummer AT gmail DOT com
Cute! Thank you for the chance to win! 🙂
Sounds like a book my 2yo would love!
Great for the children, thanks
This book looks adorable! My kids are always asking what noise an animal makes so I’m sure they would love this book!
We love Awana … Puggles are baby platypus and the name of the Awana group for 2 yr olds!
We love animal books!
Brilliant.
Thanks for giveaway.
That sounds like a really cute book, we’re always looking for new ones to add to our kid’s little library.