A Bank Street College Best Children’s Book of the Year
“No American publisher has attempted what TOON Books is doing, providing interesting graphic novels with educator-approved text for readers as young as four years old…Chick & Chickie [is] its first volume featuring the art of Claude Ponti, one of the most respected French authors of children’s literature. Ponti has a background in fine art, and his books contain stunning visuals, often with surrealistic dreamlike elements. The editors at TOON Books took illustrations from Ponti’s Tromboline and Foulbazar series (about two little chicks) and created a new book in the classic TOON Books style with a vetted vocabulary. The art is all Ponti, but the book itself is re-imagined for a young American audience.”—ICv2
“Ponti is a prolific picture-book author in his native France, and TOON Books has modified two of his French works as a single addition to their winning stable. Ponti’s aesthetic is quite on display, as each page constitutes a single panel and, while its shape and the iconography and symbols within are drawn from comics, even young readers who have never set eyes on sequential art before will be quite comfortable here.”—Booklist
“Chick and Chickie are friends and they like to do things together. First they make and decorate masks. They are very creative, and while the masks are colorful, some younger kids might be frightened of them; however, this is only a small part of the story, so I would encourage kids to keep reading. Next they play with the letter ‘A’. They tickle him and throw him, and they are rewarded with sounds of happiness from the letter ‘A’ in the form of Ahhhhhhh’s. They plan to play with the letter ‘B’ tomorrow. There is another part where one of the chicks makes a scary face which is reminiscent of older comics, but overall these elements should not detract from the overall cuteness and humor of the story.”—No Flying, No Tights
“It’s a graphic novel by Claude Ponti, a French children’s illustrator, whose work (thanks to Toon Books and Google translate) is full of dream imagery, trying to capture the inner-child… although it’s designed for very young, brand-new readers, it’s a strange, quirky little thing. Well, it is eventually, when we get to the second part of the graphic novel. What you see first of all is a delightful little tale, beautifully simple; two little chicks playing together, making masks together, scaring each other: And that lovely, very gentle scare that’s done by each chick in turn will delight the children who’ll read this, and let the grown ups (me) who read this out loud to the tiny children they know (our foundation class of 3-4 year olds) really have fun doing the scary moments. It’s… very strangely brilliant, a bit like Sesame Street with a kidnap in the middle. Kids are going to love it though. Like all Toon Books, the quality of the production is incredibly high, matching the quality of the story and art every time. Chick & Chickie is yet another great little first comic experience, and one that will delight in the library for many years.”—Forbidden Planet International
“Chick & Chickie Play All Day! is a first comic for the young early reader. The book is written by Claude Ponti, who is an established author of children’s books published in French. This one is enjoyed in English and colorfully walks the early reader through a cute interchange of two chickens who explore the letter ‘A’ as if it were a person with various feelings and expressions. The story is lively and a really fun way to introduce letters to children. Hopefully, the author will follow up with all of the letters of the alphabet. Don’t be surprised if your child wants to read it again and again.”—St. Louis Homeschooling Examiner
“As do most good friends, Chick and Chickie have fun playing together. First, they decide to make masks, and they take turns scaring one another. Next they decide to play school and have a good time with the letter A. They try different things with the first letter of the alphabet to see what sounds it will make. Beginning readers will enjoy a graphic novel such as this one that they can read independently.”—Reading Today Online
“Chick & Chickie: Play All Day introduces us to the French author and illustrator of over sixty children’s books Claude Ponti… it is possible to create a book at an even simpler reading level that is still smart and entertaining to kids and adults, and that is exactly what Ponti has done with Chick & Chickie: Play All Day. The story begins on the cover where Chick and Chickie are deciding what to play. Chick says, ‘Let’s make masks,’ and Chickie agrees. After making the masks, they proceed to scare each other and have a laugh about it. Observant eyes will notice Chick and Chickie’s masks trembling and sweating as they face each other while Chick and Chickie swap compliment on their mask making skills…The language in Chick & Chickie: Play All Day is genuinely simple, somewhere between the über-basic BOB Books and the kind of frustrating Biscuit beginning reader books. If you want to give an emerging reader a treat – a book they might actually be able to read and enjoy – definitely put Chick & Chickie: Play All Day at the top of your list.”
—Books4yourkids.com
“Chick and Chickie play in this first comic for early readers. The words and concepts are simple. The illustrations cute and minimalist. And there’s some humor over the letter ‘A’ that new readers will surely appreciate. This little book would surely be a winner with most readers just starting out.”—The Blue Stocking Society
“With simple dialog and clear design features, this Level 1 TOON book will engage new readers with its humor and surprises…New readers will enjoy reading this again and again, noticing details layered within the illustrations. The short sentences, easy sight words, large font size and use of dialog bubbles makes it successful for brand new readers. A winner in this outstanding imprint of graphics for new readers.”—Bay Views and More
“Claude Ponti has come up with an ingenious and hilarious way for kids to learn the sound of the letter “A.” Young ones will particularly love Mr. Ponti’s ability to personify the ‘A’ by showing it with a range of emotions.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Claude Ponti’s Chick and Chickie Play All Day! is a comic aimed for beginning readers, so like most children’s books for that earliest age, it’s a simple story. What impressed me almost off the bat, though, was how well Ponti uses the ideas behind sequential art storytelling in a way that will subtly teach those littlest of readers how to read comics. Presented in a landscape format, Ponti sometimes uses the two-page spread as a single panel, other times as two panels. In doing so, he’s showing his readers the progression of time, either through a panel border or through a long stretch of space. As they walk across the spreads, you get the sensation of scenes taking longer than a single moment; it’s impressive when you realize that he’s using these storytelling techniques for young readers who will almost certainly grab what he’s doing and take it with them.The story itself in Chick and Chickie Play All Day! is cute, too; it’s about a pair of chicks who first make masks and scare one another, and then play with a massive, ambulatory letter A. The second half feels like a good way to introduce those little readers into the idea of there being more than one ‘A’ sound, and to also play with the idea of inflection creating meaning. Add in some charming illustrations, and this is a winner for those new readers in your household. Plus, if that’s not enough, you can also start prepping them into the world of comics. Everyone wins.”—Read About Comics
“With simple dialog and clear design features, this Level 1 Toon book will engage new readers with its humor and surprises… New readers will enjoy reading this again and again, noticing details layered within the illustrations. The short sentences, easy sight words, large font size and use of dialog bubbles makes it successful for brand new readers. A winner in this outstanding imprint of graphics for new readers.”—BayViews (Association of Children’s Librarians of Northern California)
“This is another new Toon Book, designed for just beginning readers. It’s about two baby chickens that frighten each other with masks and then torture the letter A, a bit of surreal literalism I appreciated. It’s cute and engaging; kids will probably like it. Moving on.”—Robot 6 (Comic Book Resources)
“New readers will enjoy reading this again and again, noticing details layered within the illustrations and the humor. The illustrations of Chick and Chickie’s emotions are particularly noteworthy, reminding me in a way of Mo Willem’s Elephant and Piggie series. These cues are so important for new readers, helping them read the dialog with expression and meaning. The short sentences, easy sight words, large font size and use of dialog bubbles makes this book perfect for brand-new readers in kindergarten or 1st grade.”—Great Kid Books
“One of the many reasons Toon Books are neat is their focus on art and artists. I just noticed that the copyright page lists the method of creation of the work; in this case, it’s ‘ink and watercolors’. That’s a fascinating insight into how comics come to be. This is a book for younger readers, with one image per page. The two birds make masks, and then they play with a letter A with a face. It’s a goofy book. I wish the space had been used more effectively — there are sequences where one page out of the spread of two is almost blank.”—Comics Worth Reading
“Chick and Chickie Play All Day! is the perfect new book for new readers. The illustrations are beautiful and hilarious! Also, the author, Claude Ponti is from France and is a beloved author of children’s books. I definitely recommend this Toon Book for a good laugh and a great read with a friend who is still learning and practicing how to read! Enjoy!”—Neely’s News
“Chick and Chickie is a great addition to any emergent literacy program. Ponti’s artwork is clean and crisp, allowing young readers to understand what is happening easily. While their masks terrify each other, the images are anything but scary, and the bit with the letter ‘A’ allows children to emulate what Chick and Chickie are doing through the use of action verbs… Chick and Chickie is a fun romp for emergent readers. My three year old loves to sit and just look at the pictures, making up his own stories to got along with it, and my 5 year old will sit and read it out loud. I would highly recommend Ponti’s work for any pre-k or kindergarten class.”—The Graphic Novel Reader
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