My New Shoes

Toddler-PreS—A little bear with growing feet goes shopping for shoes in this engaging picture book. Colorful illustrations show a happy bear on the train with his dad and two other parent/child animal pairings—foxes, bunny rabbits—before all three families head into the city and to the shoe store. Feet get measured, and then a variety of footwear options are introduced: "Maybe you need shoes for school/Shoes with heels would be so cool/Do I need rain boots for the rain?/Sandals for sun…or sneakers for games?" The artwork, which appears to have been created digitally, is full of smiling faces, joyful scenes, and vibrant color that will appeal to preschoolers. The text is simple and moves from rhyme to rhyme fairly well. The unfortunate exception is the attempt to rhyme "train" and "again," which requires a British accent to pull off.