Baby Business

Publishers Weekly

Cuetara's two previous books of poetry and cartoons (Terrible Teresa and Other Very Short Stories; The Crazy Crawler Crane and Other Very Short Truck Stories) practically define pithy urbanity, but the subject of babies seems to have softened her edge. Here she offers 24 quatrains and drawings on infant and toddler subjects ranging from "Waking" to "Sleeping," with stops in between at "Screaming," "Pooping" and other adorable or maddening activities. Each poem has a similar closer: "Hungry little baby," "Stinky little baby" and so on. In the funniest and sharpest of the bunch, "Visitors," a baby in a striped sleeper stands on his mother's lap, firmly grips her cheeks in his tiny hands. Locking a steely, nose-to-nose gaze on her, he renders any conversation with her friends impossible: "Aaron doesn't really care/ Whether Mommy's friends are there./ Doesn't see why he should share./ Demanding little baby." Unfortunately, many of the poems come across as mundane ("Listen to Katrina sing/ In her automatic swing./ This is baby's favorite thing./ Dizzy little baby"), while others seem designed for adults more than youngsters ("Malcolm's toy box overflows/ With proper toys his parents chose./ But grown-up toys are best, he knows./ Wily little baby"). Ages 2-up. (June) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2-Each page showcases a baby doing what babies do best: screaming, playing, entertaining visitors, and snacking. These children are on the go, pausing only when necessary, leaving their frustrated, unnerved, and tired parents a step behind: "Gum and string and bits of wax-/Gaby sees them all as snacks./Mom and Dad have heart attacks. /Hungry little baby." The neon-colored illustrations are caricatures of babies-there's nothing adorable about these wide-eyed, ethnically diverse infants with big, round heads and grimaces or sly smiles. The humor will most likely be lost on younger children, but for older siblings who are frustrated by the changes a new baby may bring, this title may elicit giggles.-Wendy Woodfill, Hennepin County Library, Minnetonka, MN Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

With tongue firmly in cheek, Cuetara catalogues a toddler's world into 24 activities, from "Waking" to "Bedtime," "Crawling" to "Swinging," expressing "Brotherly Love" to "Snacking": "Gum and string and bits of wax- / Gaby sees them all as snacks. / Mom and Dad have heart attacks. / Hungry little baby." Simply drawn cartoon illustrations above each jaunty verse depict children of various ages and skin tones happily (for the most part) going about their "business." Bands of color frame each poem and picture and a monochrome sketch in the corner aims at the adults who will recognize the joke. So, "Visitors" suggests that Aaron doesn't give a hoot if Mommy has company-"Demanding little baby"-and in the lower right-hand corner sits a light-green crown. "Crawling": "Speedy little baby" and two checkered racing flags. Parents of under-threes will laugh with recognition as they share this wry, affectionate, pitch-perfect tally from the author of Terrible Teresa, and Other Very Short Stories (1997). (Picture book. 2-4)