Splish, Splash, Splosh!: David Melling

Book: Splish, Splash, Splosh!
Author: David Melling (@DavidMelling1)
Pages: 22
Age Range: 2-5 

Splish, Splash, Splosh! by David Melling is a medium-sized board book with padded cover (part of a series from Tiger Tales Books). It's an appealing counting book featuring Splosh the duck (a character first introduced in a book published in the UK) and his nine duck friends. 

The text is bouncy and read-aloud-able, with rhymes for each pair of numbers. Like this (across two page spreads):

"ONE fluffy duck goes waddling
one day.

TWO fluffy ducks have found
a place to play! 

It's a fun book to read aloud. But it's Melling's illustrations that will delight toddlers. We see Splosh in an inner tube, hesitating to jump in to the pool. We see the other ducks, in swim caps, goggles, and even flippers bouncing around, bumping into one another. We see Splosh balanced in his inner tube, which hangs from a tree (after a diving board mishap), and a clearly irritated bird poking a hole in said inner tube.

The illustrations are just the right mix of silly and simple. There's a plain white background, and little texture to the illustrations. Melling's focus is all on the ducks, their swim paraphernalia, and the pool. And, on the last page, water splashing everywhere.

Splish, Splash, Splosh! would be a great bathtime book for two-year-olds, or just a fun counting book for slightly older preschoolers. The padded cover and brightly colored letters in the title will catch the eye of young children, who sense immediately that this is a book for them. The sturdy construction, not to mention the quiet humor, will appeal to parents and librarians. 

Publisher: Tiger Tales Books (@TigerTalesBooks)
Publication Date: March 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

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