The Kiwi Hokey Tokey - Board Book Edition product reviews

Do the hokey tokey...this book needs a warning on it that you and your kids will become addicted!! We loved it! Miss 7 and Miss 3 were very excited to read through it when they saw the book. The colours, the illustrations, with kiwiana. It was right up their alley on what they love to share together! Old MacDonald Had A Farm, She'll Be Coming Round The Mountain, Do Your Ears Hang Low to name just a few that we have enjoyed together as a family.

We sat down as a family and read the book through completely and really enjoyed the cheeky characters and what they were going to get up to. So once we finished the book, the calls went up for again, again!! So this time we sang through, creating different voices for the different characters. Kiwi and piwakawaka were the favourites with the girls. Singing the song bought back so many memories of singing it at my own primary school, and seeing my girls interact with the book is exactly how I remember it. But having a kiwiana book was even better! And seeing all the special New Zealand birds. Our girls are very lucky to be able to hand feed some of New Zealand's native birds at their Dad's work where they have special permission to do so. So they love books where these birds are shown! Once the singing started, the dancing had to start also! The actions were so easy to interpret, and interpret in their own ways they did as any 7 and 3 year old would.

The price of $15 is excellent, and I would be very happy to pay that price for both a book for my daughters or a present for their friends. I love the board book too, very hard wearing and easy to show the pictures while reading. A book I would definitely recommend for kindy and daycares to read.

I was so pleased to see that this story had been issued as a board book because the target audience of pre-schoolers often wants to take charge of the page turning, but little ones are often lacking in coordination and the result is a flood of tears as a beloved book is ripped. No such issues with this book: it features sturdy binding and lovely thick boards which are designed to withstand plenty of rough if loving treatment. From the start, it was clear that this book belonged to Miss 20 Months and nobody else; she was the boss and in the first 24 hours of receiving it she had pressganged everyone into singing it to her and joining her with the actions. Everyone lost count of how many times it had been done after the number reached 12.

Not only Miss 20 Months, but also her parents, were overcome with fits of laughter as they tried to emulate the actions that all the animals were doing. Her mother even made a short video of her dancing with her father to the music while they tried dance moves like hip-hop and hula. When Kea made an appearance, there was a short break while she raced off to find her own squeaky kea - this is her favourite toy, so had to come and listen to the story too. She loved the other animals as well, but Kea remained the favourite and no doubt will accompany the book each time it is read to her so that he can listen too.

The featured creatures, although drawn as colourful caricatures of the real thing, are still recognisable because their key feature is emphasised. Kiwi has a "pokey beak", Pukeko "lanky legs", Tuatara "spiky tail", Kea "scratchy feet", Kunekune a "snuffly snout", Piwakawaka a "cheeky tail", Putangitangi "waddly feet", and Hipi a woolly coat. Only poor old Horse, who has a "funny face", is not instantly recognisable through his description - you have to look at the graphic! However, this opens up a conversation which can be broadened when the child encounters those animals and birds in real life.

This is possibly one of the most immediately successful books I have ever shared with a young child. The colourful pictures, the accessibility of the song, and the inclusion of a few everyday Maori words to set it firmly within a New Zealand context meant that it resonated with her and generated lots of enjoyment both for her and for the family. It is simple and straight to the point, deliberately aimed at the very young and guaranteed to foster a love of books. The bonus is being able to download the music so that less musical adults can still deliver the full song-and-dance experience and share it with their little ones.