Mommy, Pick Me Up

Originally published in France, Bravi’s story follows a boy with pink skin, rosy cheeks, and a mop of brown hair as he calls for his mother. Chunky cartoons set against vivid backgrounds show the boy shivering in a towel (“Mommy? I’m cold...”), standing stark naked while tossing clothes out of a dresser (“Mommy! I can’t find my pajamas!”), and sitting on the potty (“Mommy, I’m done!!”), among other scenarios. Bravi (The Noisy Book) ends with a joke about just how indispensable mothers are: “Daddy? Daddy?” the boy cries, wandering across an empty blue page. “Where’s Mommy?” Given just how absent the boy’s mother is (she only appears in four scenes), readers will probably be wondering the same thing. Ages 3–6. (Apr.)