The artwork and the illustrations in Playground by Mies Van Hout is fun and crazy and I imagine every elementary school art teacher would love this book for the artwork and creativity alone.
I do love the artwork, and I feel there are valuable aspects to this book. However, I still feel 3 out of 5 Stars is an accurate rating for Playground. It's a good book, but it isn't great.
Playground is interactive in a sense if you are looking for a storytime read aloud; it could be similar to the We're Going On a Bear Hunt, as the kids have quite the adventurous journey they could act out a different aspect on each page. .
I already mentioned the fun, crazy, and perfect illustrations, but I do have a little qualm with the layout. The kids are on an adventure, and I wish you could distinctly see them traveling from left to right across the pages; however, instead I found myself confused at times about the path the kids were taking. Sometimes, the path was a bit too maze like. Even though the pages all had arrows pointing the direction the kids are traveling it still wasn't always completely clear where I should be looking.
While reading each page, and a completely different aspect of their journey, I felt it was all too random and disconnected. It wasn't until the end of the book when they wanted to head back did I realize the story was the creative imaginative journey they were having. Even though the story was the imagination of the children and children are random, but it still was a bit too disconnected.
Overall, I did enjoy the story, and I do think there is a place for it. However, Playground was just okay and that is why it earned the 3 star rating.
Amazon has the following book review from School Library Journal:
"Two kids and their cat use their imaginations to pass through a variety of different landscapes—some friendly, some not so much—on their way to the playground. The narrators speak directly to readers ("Let's go to the playground! Are you coming?") while mazelike illustrations and instructive text encourage viewers to find the way through each page with fingers; the title page states, "Red arrows on each page show you where to start and where to go next," though these instructions are easily missed. Vibrant, dreamy illustrations depict the imaginative scenes conjured up on each spread, and kids will enjoy inspecting humorous details; on one page, the cat grumpily watches as his hat is used for blackberry collecting. The follow-along concept works more successfully on some pages than others, but lively sentences make this a fun book to act out, especially in a storytime. Beautiful colors and surreal settings clearly indicate the protagonists' fanciful creations, and they so enjoy exploring their whimsical world that when they finally arrive at their destination, they exclaim, "Let's go back!" VERDICT While the interactive elements may not be as successful as those in Hervé Tullet's Press Here or Christie Matheson's Tap the Magic Tree, this title offers plenty of fun in a lovely package."
If you are looking for an adventurous fun read aloud for a toddler or preschooler where they can act the story out, then check Playground out.
Happy Fun and Imaginative Picture Book Reading!
I received this book from Myrick Marketing in exchange for my review and honest opinion. All of my thoughts, opinions, and words are my own.
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