Red & Green

RED & GREEN is an interesting twist on The Night Before Christmas - where someone IS stirring, and it's a mouse! The story follows the mouse as they look around the house and eat Santa's cookies before settling down to sleep. When Santa arrives, he is surprised to find his snack missing.

What I loved: This book uses a unique style of die-cut pages that build across pages to tell the story. There are some unique shapes that children will enjoy as they travel through the story. For instance, there is a page cut in the shape of a wreath, and another in the shape of a house. High contrast colors appear throughout, which will work well for the youngest readers, who will also appreciate the large shapes and simplicity of the imagery. The mouse is a triangle face with circle ears, and these obvious shapes will help little ones begin to recognize basic shapes around them.

The text was very large with only short phrases appearing on each page. This will help with early word recognition and make the pages turn quickly for eager young readers. It was very easy to read aloud. The rhymes were also great to read and to listen to with a solid rhythm that carried throughout the short story.

What left me wanting more: As a small thing, the pages could be a bit confusing to turn with the different shapes and such high contrast colors. They are also in regular picture book format, which could make them tough for the youngest readers to explore on their own (though I also got confused in places). The high contrast colors can also be a bit visually overwhelming for caregivers, though I know little ones will enjoy!

Final verdict: RED & GREEN is a cute Christmas picture book about the mouse who is stirring on Christmas Eve. This book will work well for toddlers and preschoolers, who will enjoy the unique shapes, rhyming text, and high contrast images.

The pages of Red & Green are incredibly engaging and tactile. I found the first time through the illustrations and exploring the shapes of the pages was the focus of my attention. Then I reread the book to see the text that accompanied the book. The verses of The Night Before Christmas are told with a humorous twist of a mouse who eats Santa’s treat. Overall, this was an engaging read that is sure to be read repeatedly. I love that the pages expand the idea of how a book looks and acts and inspires creativity.