About the Book, Author and Illustrator
This is a picture book that we think should be in every nursery or pre-school setting. From the husband and wife team who created the bestselling story The Perfect Fit , this is another example of a story with a positive subliminal message told via an assortment of shape characters. So young children have fun learning the names of colours and shapes whilst listening to the subtle lesson about the importance of perseverance and team work.
As you can see from the photos we have included of the inside pages the design of the book is appealing for young children with lots of bright colours, clean lines and speech bubbles for the characters with minimal text. But if you want to know what an unbiased toddler REALLY thinks about his book – scroll down to check out two-year-old Theo’s opinion. He kindly agreed to read and review if for us with his lovely Mummy.
Naomi Jones (née Cartwright) worked in children’s publishing for seven years – at Puffin, Orion, and most recently as rights manager at Hachette Children’s Group. As well as now being a full-time mum to her and James’ two young boys, she is as a freelance industry editor, and is also the children’s books reviewer for the popular blog Mini Travellers.
James Jones is an award-winning freelance Art Director and Designer working with publishers and clients all around the world. His work has been recognised by AIGA (American Institute of Graphic Arts), Type Directors Club, Design Observer and the ABCD (The Academy of British Cover Design) awards amongst others.Previously he was Art Director for Oneworld Publications, BBIA Independent Publisher of the Year, IPG Trade Publisher of the Year and Winner of the Man Booker Prize in 2015 and 2016. Prior to that I worked at Vintage Books for Penguin Random House, and before that at Orion Publishing Group for Hachette where he met Naomi.
Book Review
I can recognise lots of different shapes now
Theo’s opinion – I love spotting the circle in the story and it is great to see him build a tower. I also build a tower of shapes on my dining table, which is fun.
After reading this story I can now put the shapes flat to build a tower. I can recognise lots of different shapes now. Thank you for this fun book.
Mum’s opinion – What a delightful book about shapes who just don’t give up and give it one more try! We enjoyed this book about a circle trying to figure out all possible of ways of making a tower.
It is a lovely book teaching kids to give it one more try and to keep going. At the end of the book, it is great to see circle realise that he needs to be flat to build the tower he has always wanted to.
The colourful illustrations are great as they really bounce off the page and you can imagine the different shapes jumping around and the words written in different directions liven up the page and bring the story to life.
Page Preview
If you would would like to buy a copy of the book we invite you to order it from your local independent book shop.
Or, you can shop on-line and support our Kids Reviews page by sourcing your discounted book via this link
Alternatively, we suggest that you visit your local library and request to borrow a copy from a friendly librarian.
Whichever you choose we hope you enjoy being part of your unique reading community – happy reading everyone!
Reviewer Profile
- Name: Theo
- Age: 2 years
- Likes: bananas, Teletubbies and ducks
- Dislikes: water and rice
- Favourite Book: The Tiger Who Came to Tea by Judith Kerr
- Favourite Film: The Boss Baby
- Favourite Song: Five Little Ducks
