Review: Kiki's Pacifier by Esther van den Berg

 

Genre: Children's 2-4

Pages: 32

Published: November 1, 2022

A sweet, delightful story about growing up and saying goodbye to your pacifier. For toddlers ages 24 months and up, with a focus on the child’s skills.

Mommy thinks Kiki is too big for her pacifier. She would like Kiki to keep her teeth nice and strong by gnawing. Are teeth really that important? Kiki goes to visit her animal friends to see what they can do with their teeth. 

I received a copy of this book through Netgalley. This is my honest review. 

This is a story where a young guinea pig goes around asking various animals what they can do with their teeth because her mom wants her to get rid of her pacifier to preserve her teeth. The answers are pretty humorous while being almost realistically accurate. I could see this story being a decent way to encourage a human toddler to get rid of their pacifier too. 

The illustrations are adorable. They have fun, bright backgrounds and cute little touches that humanize the animals and emphasize what they do with their teeth. And they're funny, think a beaver in a bikini. 

Overall I give this book 4.2 out of 5 stars. - Katie 

Amazon

Esther van den Berg (1982) studied illustration at the art academy in Kampen, where she also grew up. At the academy, she liked to stand with her fingers in the black ink of one of the printing presses. After a good turn, etchings, linocuts, and monotypes appeared on the other side of the printing press.
After her graduation she left for the Randstad and worked as a designer. Only eight years after her graduation it started to itch again; she had to start drawing again! Under the name PUIKEPRENT, she tried new things as an illustrator.

Nowadays Esther largely makes her illustrations digitally. Because of her artisanal education, she is always looking for the right texture and a hand-painted feeling. Her prints are atmospheric, with an eye for detail, often with a wink.