Baby! Baby! (review)

Babies' taste for looking at baby faces is widely known, and Ceelen indulges that inclination and takes it a step farther, with each spread in this wordless board book paralleling a photo of a baby with a photo of an animal in a similar pose. Some of the comparisons are more geared to adult than baby appeal (infants aren't likely to see the humor in the similarity between a frog's shape seen from above and a baby sprawled out on its stomach), and some images (such as the up-close face of a turtle) may be difficult for tinies to recognize, with the vacillation between black-and-white and color additionally confusing the situation. Many of the comparisons, though, are apt and inviting—a sacked-out kitten sprawls with careless paws just like the sleeping human baby opposite; a young ape sucks its fingers busily, just like the facing baby—and the multiracial cast of babies is expressive and enticing in its own right. Pictures are attractively inset into colored pages, with the human babies mostly shot against white backgrounds for additional clarity. Older kids with new sibs may also enjoy the beastly reflections, while little ones just beginning to focus on pages will likely want to get their paws on this.