Let's Look at Boats

Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot

"Let's Go" is the title of this series, and this board book is chock full of information. The drawings are almost like photographs. Each spread features a type of boat with callouts to identify the major parts. There is also a question posed on certain spreads which often require some counting and observational skills. The very first boat is a Viking longship which is quite impressive. The question posed here is to count the oars. A Chinese junk is eye-catching and readers are asked to find the lucky symbol on the junk. The paddle steamer is flying lots of flags and readers are asked to count them. Next there is an ocean liner, oil tanker, aircraft carrier (with a request to count the planes) and finally a submarine. The answers, by the way, are not provided so caregivers will need to sharpen their own skills. The publishers have created a series that looks at a variety of vehicles—boats, planes, tractors and trains. Reviewer: Marilyn Courtot