"Hello, friends! We are so excited about today’s review: Fiona’s Feelings, written by Dr. John Hutton and featuring the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden’s photographs of the internet’s favorite baby hippo, Fiona! Using real photographs of Fiona’s remarkably expressive face, this beginner’s board book explores emotions like happiness, anger, silliness and pride, using simple rhyming sentences that are four to six words apiece. Objectively, this is absolutely a fad book, but so delightful that it’s hard to care. For the unaware, Fiona the hippo became a media sensation when she was born six weeks premature at the Cincinnati Zoo, and the internet fell in love with her sweet face and playful personality as the zoo documented her care, recovery, and growth. And indeed, Fiona has a curiously emotive face and a rascally nature that makes a book of feelings featuring her a great fit. The rhyming text flows well and keeps things basic, but still has a lot of charm in keeping with the Fiona spirit. The quality of the photos was a little inconsistent, which was distracting to me, but JJ didn’t seem to notice or care. The length is perfect for the youngest of bookworms, and we really enjoyed it. So whether the Fiona craze ends up having staying power or not in the fickle minds of the internet, this board book is classically adorable enough to be timeless on it’s own. Baby Bookworm approved!" —thebabybookwormblog
"Readers will be hard-pressed to find a hippo as cute as Fiona, the titular star of this joyful, photo-illustrated board book. Fiona, a resident of the Cincinnati zoo, is a social media sensation for a reason: her vivid expressions communicate a range of simple and complex emotions, from happiness to 'swimming proud.' An adorable selection for little ones who, like Fiona, are 'growing bigger and stronger.' –Della Farrell, School Library Journal
"Fiona's Feelings is a joyous board book that small children will treasure." —midwestbookreview.com
"A photogenic hippo models emotions and behaviors in an undeniably winning board book.... Each page offers one photo and one clear concept that should resonate with the board-book audience, providing children with vocabulary for their own emotions and expressions...Tots will find Fiona a welcome nursery presence." —Kirkus Reviews
2018-03-18
A photogenic hippo models emotions and behaviors in an undeniably winning board book.Born six weeks prematurely, Cincinnati Zoo resident Fiona, the baby hippo, required much extra nursing and attention from her human caregivers. Fiona's growth and progress were meticulously documented, blogged, and reblogged, making her an internet sensation in the process. As fate would have it, there are few things cuter than an underweight baby hippo, making Fiona an ideal candidate for a children's board book. Fiona's abundance of personality makes her well-suited to model a range of basic emotions; anthropomorphizing her various grins, yawns, peeks, and bellows comes naturally and easily. The success or failure of this type of book is a direct function of how unambiguously the photographs suggest the feelings indicated by the text. To that end, author and pediatrician Hutton has chosen an exemplary selection of pictures to accompany his simple rhymes: "Hippo happy. / Sometimes sad. // Often silly. / Uh-oh, mad." Each page offers one photo and one clear concept that should resonate with the board-book audience, providing children with vocabulary for their own emotions and expressions. The steady meter and smooth rhyme scheme are easily retained; with repeated readings children will no doubt anticipate and be able to name familiar states such as "scared," "proud," "sleepy," "shy," and "hungry," to name a few.Tots will find Fiona a welcome nursery presence. (Board book. 6 mos.-3)
