Board Book Review: 8 Little Planets

I wanted to be mad at this one for not acknowledging Pluto, but on the back it says “This book is dedicated to minor planet Pluto” so I’ll let it slide. But you bet your butt I’ll keep on telling these girls “back in my day, there were NINE planets” and continually messing up the mnemonic for the planets because in my day that saying on Maren’s shirt was “My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” (which is why that shirt is hilarious to me after they revoked Pluto’s planet status)

Anyway, Pluto aside, this book is super fun! It has a lovely rhythm thanks to the rhyming, and it’s packed with just the right amount of facts to be interesting without being overwhelming. I also love that it counts down instead of up. It’s a nice change to most of our counting books, though I wouldn’t necessarily categorize this as a counting book.

I also find the artwork to be really visually appealing. It’s fun and playful and super colorful, and I love the touch with the rainbow rings in the cutout, which attracted Madeline to our reading as well. Of course, the cutout is a fun touch in and of itself. It really engages Maren, who is all about the books that have a little something else going on besides just pages.