The Loud Book: Deborah Underwood
January 02, 2012
Book: The Loud Book
Author: Deborah Underwood
Illustrator: Renata Liwska
Pages: 32
Age Range: 2-5
The Loud Book is a companion to The Quiet Book, written by Deborah Underwood and illustrated by Renata Liwska. The Loud Book doesn't have a narrative story. Instead, each page features one of the many different kinds of "louds". These range from "last slurp loud" to "fire truck at school loud". My personal favorite was "deafening silence loud" (two kids confronted over a stolen cookie jar by a disapproving mother".
The types of loud that Underwood has come up with are a nice mix of expected, kid-friendly tropes (home runs, dropped lunch trays) and unexpected (ants cause "loud" when they make you cry by getting all over your picnic").
Liwska's illustrations add considerably to Underwood's already humorous framework, as a variety of warmly fuzzy animals experience the various loudnesses. "Surprise loud" shows rabbit and bear characters encountering a skeleton around a corner at school. "Dropping your lunch tray loud" features a mortified hedgehog, stickers fully extended. The animal characters are generally wide-eyed in surprise (or insomnia), as loud things happen around them.
The Loud Book is a fun read-aloud, perfect for preschoolers who are just old enough to understand the humor, and young enough to be interested in learning about all of these different kids of noise. I think this would make a nice library storytime read. Recommended for the preschool set.
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (@hmhbooks)
Publication Date: April 4, 2011
Source of Book: Library copy
Nominated for 2011 Cybils in Fiction Picture Books by: Sally Gee
© 2011 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).