Shapes, How Do You Say It?

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

How do you say ``cheese'' in French, Spanish, Italian and English? Dunham's books teach not only that but colors, numbers, geometric shapes and more in these four languages. An object is shown, and its name and pronunciation border it, one language on each side. Picnic, with a title that is less self-explanatory than the rest, is the most interesting of the four. It shows the cumulative result of a collection of words like grass, tablecloth, plates, forks, spoons, knives, napkins, sandwiches and ants. Four languages at once might prove daunting for early readers of English. The books do, however, present a subtle lesson about the common origin of these languages, seen in words like flowers, fleurs, flores and fiori. The illustrations of abstract objects and shapes feature bold strokes and colors. Ages 4-up. (August)