Shapes, Shapes, Shapes

Hoban is well known for her unexcelled concept books for preschoolers. Taking color and black-and-white photos of familiar objects and surroundings she shows letters, numbers, colors, opposites and more. Her pictures are more precise and clear than many stylized or abstract drawings. Giving examples of different shapes, like circles, hexagons, parallelograms and stars, she asks the child to find the shapes within the pictures. It's amazing how many shapes an open lunchbox on a checkered tablecloth can reveal; from a round orange to oval halves of a hard-boiled egg (with round yolks) to a rectangular thermos to star- and heart-shaped cookies. This marvelous book from a topnotch photographer gives children the opportunity to see the world around them, not just look at it. (38)