New Twirl Books Make Reading Even More Fun

Well-known publisher Chronicle Books recently announced a new line of interactive books and games for babies, toddlers, and young children. Created in partnership with Éditions Tourbillon in Paris, Twirl Books feature highly engaging formats and visuals.

Twirl. Turning heads, shaping minds.

I was given the opportunity to check out the first five titles released in the Twirl line, courtesy of the wonderful folks at Raincoast Books, an award winning, Canadian-owned book wholesale and distribution company based in my hometown of Vancouver, BC.

The Ultimate Book of Vehicles: From Around the World
by Anne-Sophie Baumann and Didier Balicevic

Kids LOVE lift the flap books! If your kids are curious about what’s going on behind the scenes, under the hood, or inside a ship’s hold, The Ultimate Book of Vehicles will be a hit. With more than 80 different vehicles, the book covers demolition and construction, city maintenance (think street sweeper, pooper scooper scooter!), agriculture, road and rail travel, commercial transportation (logging truck, ice cream truck!), rescue, fishing, sea travel, air travel, and space travel. The subtitle says, “From Around the World,” but it’s not really. The vast majority of vehicles are native to North America, with just a few from elsewhere.

There’s something fun to see and do on each page. Tee especially liked counting down from ten to zero and launching the rocket ship that lifts right up from the page. Be aware there are lots of small pieces and moving parts (meaning, lots to rip), so I would say this book is appropriate to older kids 6 and up. I supervise Tee with this one because a few of the moving pieces are a bit tight and hard to operate with preschooler fingers.

My First Color Dominoes: The Game of Color Discovery
by Édouard Manceau

One side of this box holds a board book illustrating blue, yellow, red, black, white, grey, brown, green, pink, purple, and orange. The other side holds 28 domino tiles made from heavy cardboard. Each tile features coloured pictures that kids can match end-to-end like regular dominoes while identifying the colours.

My First Color Dominoes: The Game of Color Discovery is recommended for ages 4 and up, but I think most 4 year olds are pretty familiar with their colours already. Tee certainly knows them, but we still had fun playing the game.

 

Jojo’s First Word Book by Xavier Deneux

Jojo’s First Word Book has almost 200 basic words organized with sturdy tabs into four categories:

• Jojo and Lulu – body parts, emotions, clothing, and family members
• At home – parts of a house, in the living room, in the kitchen, food, in the bathroom, toys, and tools
• Out and about – on the street, at the train station, in the garden, at the swimming pool, at the beach, and enjoying a snowy day
• Animal friends – on the farm, at the zoo, and in the sea

The words are written in cursive which gives the text a rustic, charming feel but makes it less than ideal for Tee to practice her reading skills. The simple illustrations are clearly labeled to help little ones identify and point to objects. The 3d house cutout on the cover and the cloth carrying handle are cute features. Kay certainly loves carrying her book around!

 

A Tree For All Seasons by Maryse Guittet

 

This one is Kay’s favourite of the five books. Sturdy enough for her little hands to explore without ripping, the shaped pages explore the seasons and how the tree and its inhabitants change throughout the year. Each page has a hidden surprise under a flap. For example, a bunny peeks out from behind a flap on the spring page, and autumn leaves hide a squirrel and a sleepy owl.

Presto Change-o!: A Book of Animal Magic by Édouard Manceau

This fun book was a hit with both the girls. Presto Change-o! features 8 transforming spreads – “animal hide-and-seek, with a twist!”

From a hot air balloon to a rabbit, a teapot to an elephant, and a rocket to a penguin, Tee loved turning and moving the pieces to create the transformations. Unfortunately, I turned my back on the girls for less than a minute and by the time I looked back Kay had yanked off the racoon’s head. I have the pieces to glue back together, but man she’s quick!

Check out how the bubbling pot turns into a raccoon.

Connect

Connect with Raincoast Books on Facebook and Twitter. Follow  Chronicle Kids on Twitter for more Twirl news.

Shop

Twirl Books are available at Amazon.ca, your local bookseller, or wherever books are sold.

Win

Raincoast Books is generously offering the same package of 5 Twirl Books that I reviewed to one lucky This West Coast Mommy reader (and to the winner’s little reader!). Enter in the Rafflecopter widget below. This giveaway is open to residents of Canada only, 18+. Entries will be verified.

Check out my other open giveaways listed in the right sidebar!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure: I received sample items for review purposes. All opinions expressed are completely honest and my own, based on my personal experience. Your experience may differ. This post contains affiliate links. This West Coast Mommy is a participant in the Amazon.com.ca, Inc. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.ca.