All Kinds of Kisses

Description

A grasshopper mouth opens east-west but not south. They're like scissors for chopping up leaves. "Don't try to hide from a kiss on its side," says grandpa grasshopper to nymphs. How would a grasshopper kiss? Whichever it is, this much is true. When we say goodnight, I love all kinds of kisses from you! We humans smooch with our lips. But how do giraffes, whales, hummingbirds, tree frogs, and other creatures kiss? It's fun to wonder about and to see in the pages of this charming board book, which includes facts about each animal at the end.

Heather Swain is the author of the teen novels Hungry and Gifted, as well as two craft books for kids. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York. Visit her at heatheraswain.com Steven Henry (ne D'Amico) is the illustrator of It's Raining Bats and Frogs by Rebecca Colby, as well as the Ella the Elegant Elephant series. He lives in Seattle, Washington. Visit him at stevenhenry.net

Swain invites readers to contemplate the types of kisses 11 animals might bestow on each other, based on their distinctive mouths, beaks, tongues, and jaws. A grasshopper's mouth, for instance, is 'like scissors for chopping up leaves.... How would a grasshopper kiss?' ... What is consistent is the tenderness between the adult animals and their offspring, as captured in Henry's (It's Raining Bats and Cats) rough-edged, mid-20th-century-retro portraits. A closing spread offers additional details about the sun bears, porpoises, chubsuckers, and other features creatures. --Publishers Weekly