“A collage-based approach to the ABC’s. In both this book and the co-published The Amicus Book of 123, Lundie couples expertly rendered graphic collage with onomatopoeia-packed text to introduce children to the alphabet and counting, respectively. The illustrations in these books are particularly impressive, featuring layers and textures that make the images bounce off the pages: The jar of ‘jelly’ has satisfying globs of strawberry goo surrounding an octagonal jar. While the pictures in ABC are child friendly—including a friendly dinosaur, a goofy-looking goat, and a kite that swishes across the page—the images in 123, which include a fried egg and house plants, feel more adult. In both books, small missteps, such as choosing ‘ship’ for S in ABC, thereby using a blend instead of the phonetic sound, and placing six collaged bees atop a low-contrast waxy yellow background in 123 indicate a lack of familiarity with best practices for introducing children to letters and counting. Generally, though, the detailed pictures coupled with the verb-packed text in both books give readers a delightful feeling of motion, and the vocabulary and text are well suited to beginning readers who are just starting to recognize words and letters. With its companion, colorful, beautifully illustrated additions to the ABC and 123 shelves. ”
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The Amicus Book of ABC
A graphic paper-collage of familiar objects associates the letters of the alphabet with simple descriptive language to foster recognition and reading.
retail your price $8.99
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The Amicus Book of Animals
A graphic paper-collage of familiar animals associates their behaviors with simple descriptive language to foster recognition and reading.
retail your price $8.99
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The Amicus Book of Colors
A graphic paper-collage of familiar objects associates colors with simple descriptive language to foster recognition and reading.
retail your price $8.99
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The Amicus Book of 123
A graphic paper-collage of familiar objects associates counting with simple descriptive language to foster number recognition and reading.
retail your price $8.99
The Amicus Book of Nature
What is nature? From the flowers and trees to the animals of the forests and oceans, it’s everything on Earth—even you! This collage-illustrated board book introduces toddlers and preschoolers to the beauty of nature around them.
retail your price $9.99
The Amicus Book of Bugs
Flying bugs, crawling bugs, jumping bugs — what little critters do you see? From dragonflies to spiders, from grasshoppers to caterpillars, this collage-illustrated board book introduces toddlers and preschoolers to a wide variety of insects and other crawling creatures they might see in the garden.
retail your price $9.99
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The Amicus Book of Animal Homes
Where do animals live? What kind of homes do they build? From hives to webs, from dams to nests, this collage illustrated board book introduces toddlers and preschoolers to a wide variety of animal dwellings.
retail your price $9.99
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The Amicus Book of Earth
Travel the world in a book, and what will we see? From ocean to city, from forest to sky, this collage illustrated board book shows toddlers and preschoolers the beauty of the Earth.
retail your price $9.99
The Amicus Book of . . .
Unique collage art using recycled maps and marbled papers illustrates these gorgeous board books, while descriptive text and sound effects give young ones additional ways to explore. Perfect for igniting little ones' curiosity, these board books make an engaging one-to-one story time read.
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Complete Series of 8: your price $75.92
“Ah! Initially there was some fear that this would turn out to be yet another coffee table board book where the parents ooo and coo over the art and the babies would rather be chewing on the coffee table itself than read it. What Lundie does that stands out is engage in this delightful, chewy repetition that goes on with a lot of the people, places and things being featured. The artist, 'goes splat, splat, splat with my paint.' Jelly is, 'Yum, yum, so good in my tum.' And, yes, the art is magnificent. Not so high contrast that you’d use it with a very young child, but perfect for those squirmy one-year-olds at bedtime. Love it!”—Elizabeth Bird
“Meet a varied assortment of animals and learn a brief fact about each one. There’s no question that the collage-style art here is striking. Boldly clipped animals pose in a sophisticated, modern-looking palette of desaturated primary colors. Illustrator Lundie collages with innovative papers, including weathered graph paper, cardboard, and old maps. Put together, they create a deep, satisfyingly textured feel, as when an old map becomes a cragged iceberg behind aqua waves and a languid-looking narwhal. Textually though, the book flags. One-line factoids such as ‘Leopard: I’ve got too many spots to count’ are correct but bland. There’s no overt connection among the animals, which hail from many habitats, and their labelled sounds are random—why is the readily recognized toucan presented sleeping with a generic ‘zzzz’ noise? The end falls utterly flat, with a confusing raccoon page that suddenly breaks the predictable pattern by introducing a rhetorical question and a peculiar final page featuring a reprisal of all the animals making their strangely chosen sounds: ‘Oh no! It’s all of us. What a terrible noise!’ A companion book on colors features the same lively art but the same dull, nonsensical statements (‘Pink is a pretty color’); at least the ending, which asks readers to identify all the colors, is less strained. Extra-thick cardboard pages will hold up to multiple reads. Handsome but odd.”
“Ten homes for 10 animals—just right to intrigue little naturalists. Extra-thick, sturdy board pages are easy to turn. The text on each page uses a predictable format. The name of each home is printed in a large font, followed in smaller type by a simple declaration of who lives there, with the name of the animal slightly enlarged: “A dam is for beavers!” The text accompanying the final illustration of “a house…for people” adds a follow-up question—“Where do you live?”—that opens the door to more personal reflection. Animals included seem to have been chosen arbitrarily; there is no clear connection among the animals except that they all have homes. Some, such as the hermit crab’s shell, are quite specific while others, like the mole’s tunnel, are rather vague. Stylized drawings of each animal in its dwelling offer a bit more information for children. Many readers will linger to study the richly textured collage illustrations executed using newspapers, maps, graph and other papers in muted tones. A sound or action word commonly associated with the animal shown is included in each picture: “Neigh!” is near two horses in a stable; “Twitch!” is the rabbit’s action; and “Bubble!” and “Gulp!” float near two of the fish swimming in a coral reef. The beehive, alas, is incorrectly depicted as a paper-wasps’ nest. This simple yet sophisticated book should find a home on the board-book shelf. (Board book. 2-5) ”
“Take a mini-tour around the world in this vibrantly collaged introduction to 10 different habitats. This diminutive board book covers the basics, like deserts and jungles, but also veers into less-well-traveled habitats, like “the poles” and “the skies.” On most pages, there’s the requisite representative animals and plants, such as a stylized lion in the “grasslands” or an assortment of trees in the “forest,” but in another departure, human activities (though no actual humans) are given space. There’s a page devoted to “cities,” and instead of the expected fish, “oceans” are filled with various jaunty ships. Elegantly collaged illustrations have a flat, contemporary feel to them; they are made of various textured papers in primarily matte, muted colors with a few richly colored highlights. Whether a noble deer strutting his stuff or a concerned adult tiger peeking at a precocious cub, the animals have whimsical faces and poses. While the art shines, however, the text is uneven. Repetitive exclamation points are wearing, and onomatopoeic words incorporated into the art vary from charming to confusing (“orbit!” isn’t really a sound). Most of the succinct tidbits of information, like “the poles are very icy and cold,” are clear, but some, like “the Earth is the third planet from the Sun,” are too nebulous for younger listeners to understand. Though the text sometimes stumbles, the art makes it an attractive addition to the habitat shelf. ”
“Lundie has a style that reminds me not a little of the work of Carin Berger, what with her use of brightly colored cut paper. The book is as much a pleasure to look at as is it is to use with a kid learning their colors. And I don’t usually do this, but I think you have to take a look at how she makes shoes in this book. I want ‘em. Should a book be included here for including cute shoes? I sure as heck wouldn’t rule it out . . . ”—Elizabeth Bird
“Delivering the message that nature is something that human beings are a part of, not separate from, this board book devotes its pages to facets of the natural world: a haughty buck shares the animals page with a grinning narwhal and a stunned raccoon; cephalopods drift beside a boat on the page for oceans; and children run and fly kites on a page celebrating “you.” Collage illustrations make use of maps and other found materials for their muted colors, making every page a visual feast. ”—Michelle Anne Schingler
“Briefly meet nine different insect species (and one misplaced snail). Some big bugs are hiding inside this neatly packaged board book with diminutive trim! The refined insect collages fall into that optimal space between scientifically accurate yet stylized enough to be nonthreatening. Colors weave between luminous translucent wings, dazzlingly bright caterpillar and bee stripes, and earthy-colored bug bodies, all backed by minimal but evocative backgrounds, as with a fly hovering over silhouettes of stinky socks. Accompanying text identifying and providing a brief fact about the bug is succinctly accurate, but the choice of bolded word within the factoid feels arbitrary. In “a caterpillar munches leaves and makes itself a cocoon,” isn’t cocoon as relevant as leaves? Onomatopoeic words “flutter” or “crawl” unobtrusively about the outlines of the critters. A companion book, Nature, utilizes a daintier style of collage, creating delicate, intricately cut habitats. Unlike the laser-focused, zoomed-in Bugs, Nature takes a long view indeed, showcasing “rivers,” “oceans,” and the “universe” itself. This scope can feel grandiose, and the more-conceptual pages, like “seasons” or “weather,” could have used books of their own, although ending with “you” as an integral part of nature does ground it somewhat. Human characters, of whom the majority present as light-skinned, are the weakest part of Lundie’s collage work. A solid board-book introduction to insects. (Board book. 1-3) ”
“Happy Earth Day! Since I absolutely love all of Isobel Lundie's board books, I thought it only fitting to share this one with you on Earth Day. Lundie's collage illustrations use maps, newspaper and graph paper, paired with other earth-toned papers to create a truly eye-catching and creative set of illustrations. With just the right pinch of information for children in the 1-2 age range, The Amicus Book of Earth gives children a basic understanding of what jungles have, what grasslands are like, what wetlands are like, that cities come in all different sizes, that oceans cover most of the earth's surface, and that desserts can either be hot or freezing. Enjoy! ”—Kelsey Marie Paff
“Discover a variety of bugs with this delightful board book for little ones. First, meet a green beetle with long antennae. Readers learn that the beetle’s hard shell helps to hide its wings. Then, encounter a cute honeybee that carries pollen to make honey. Next up is the mantis with large eyes and the ability to fold its arms. A dragonfly whizzes by on the following page; it can be found near a pond. The fly buzzes by inside of the house, and the grasshopper can chirp by rubbing its legs together. Readers will also learn about a moth, a caterpillar, a snail, and an earwig. The unique illustrations will captivate and engage young children. Each type of bug is named and a description is included, taking this book to the next level. A wonderful board book to include in a preschool classroom or on a bookshelf to be read at home. ”—Kristen Bowman
“Bring a bit of nature inside with this beautiful board book for little ones. Readers will learn that nature includes many kinds of things. Flowers ranging in color and size are a part of nature. Animals living all over the world in different habitats, such as deers and whales, are a part of nature. Nature includes trees such as maples and redwoods. Seasons, including spring, summer, fall, and winter make up the natural world. Bodies of water, such as rivers and oceans, are a part of nature. Different types of weather on Earth and even the universe are included in the natural world. Humans are also an important part of nature. Gorgeous and colorful collage illustrations make this board book a must for a baby or a toddler! Many of the illustrations feature action words, as well to introduce new vocabulary such as rush, splash, and whoosh! Pairs well with other books from this series. ”—Kristen Bowman
“True to other selections of Lundie’s “Amicus Book of...” series, her unique and energetic artistic compositions of paper collage manifest into immersive expeditions to meet nature and its elements up close. Every subject is identified by a brief descriptive phrase, but the layered aesthetic is the true appeal. ”
“"In Isobel Lundie's creatively illustrated The Amicus Book of Animals (Amicus Ink, $8.99), each page introduces an animal, with a simple sentence describing one of its regular behaviors: "Chameleon/ I can catch bugs with my tongue. Yum!" Every graphic paper collage creature and its background features maps, grids, patterns and textures that invite pre-readers to interact tactilely with the book." ”