Mama Tiger Tiger Cub by Steve Light

Mama Tiger Tiger Cub by Steve Light
Review Copy from Candlewick Press
I love a good board book. A really good board book - one that embraces the simplicity that the format demands, especially when working with a concept. Steve Light is a master at this, and this interview gives you a glimpse into his process. With Mama Tiger Tiger Cub, Light wanted to introduce "descriptive words to the very young," while also building on what he learned creating his last board book, Black Bird, Yellow Sun where he distilled the text down to a few words while still telling a story with emotion. With Mama Tiger Tiger Cub, readers follow a Mama Tiger, out alone - or seemingly alone. Occasionally the tip of a tail or the points of little ears can be seen as she goes about her day. Light's geometrically rough shapes and bright primary colors capture the energy of a fish swimming and a bird flying as well as the calm of Mama Tiger in repose, flowers surrounding her. With the penultimate page, we see, "Mama Tiger Loud Roar," the mama stretched out on a rock, a great zig-zaggy roar emanating from her mouth as two little ears peek out from below. The final page, "Mama Tiger Tiger Cub," shows the family curled together, sound asleep, for a deeply satisfying ending.


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