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BabyLit® Primers
Frankenstein: A BabyLit® Anatomy Primer
A BabyLit® Anatomy Primer BabyLit® is a fashionable way to introduce your toddler to the world of classic literature. With clever, simple text by Jennifer Adams, paired with stylish design and illustrations by Sugar’s Alison Oliver, these books are a must for every savvy parent’s nursery library. JENNIFER ADAMS is the author of more than 30 books, including board books in the best-selling BabyLit series which introduce young children to the world of classic literature. Jennifer works as a writer and editor in Salt Lake City, Utah. Visit her website at jennifer-adams.com. Alison Oliver runs Sugar design studio. Alison’s design portfolio includes everything from logos to packaging and product design for clients such as Chronicle Books, Citibabes, and Aerie, as well as Gibbs Smith. She lives in New York.
22 pages, Board book
First published August 1, 2014
3 people are currently reading
239 people want to read
About the author
Jennifer Adams
182 books199 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Jennifer Adams is the author of more than forty books. Her bestselling BabyLit board books (published by Gibbs Smith) introduce small children to the world of classic literature and have sold 1.5 million copies. She is the author of another series of board books, My Little Cities.
Jennifer’s picture books for children, Edgar Gets Ready for Bed, Edgar and the Tattle-Tale Heart and Edgar and the Tree House of Usher are inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven.” She also has two new picture books forthcoming from HarperCollins.
Her titles also include books for adults, including Y is for Yorick, a slightly irreverent look at Shakespeare, and Remarkably Jane, notable quotations on Jane Austen.
Jennifer graduated from the University of Washington. She has 20 years’ experience as a book editor, including at Gibbs Smith and Quirk Books. She currently works as a consulting editor for Sounds True, developing their children’s line. Jennifer works some evenings at her local independent bookstore, The King’s English, to feed her book habit. She lives in Salt Lake City with her husband, Bill Dunford, who is also a writer.
(bio from author's website)
Jennifer Adams is the author of more than forty books. Her bestselling BabyLit board books (published by Gibbs Smith) introduce small children to the world of classic literature and have sold 1.5 million copies. She is the author of another series of board books, My Little Cities.
Jennifer’s picture books for children, Edgar Gets Ready for Bed, Edgar and the Tattle-Tale Heart and Edgar and the Tree House of Usher are inspired by Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven.” She also has two new picture books forthcoming from HarperCollins.
Her titles also include books for adults, including Y is for Yorick, a slightly irreverent look at Shakespeare, and Remarkably Jane, notable quotations on Jane Austen.
Jennifer graduated from the University of Washington. She has 20 years’ experience as a book editor, including at Gibbs Smith and Quirk Books. She currently works as a consulting editor for Sounds True, developing their children’s line. Jennifer works some evenings at her local independent bookstore, The King’s English, to feed her book habit. She lives in Salt Lake City with her husband, Bill Dunford, who is also a writer.
(bio from author's website)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
May 14, 2015
Honestly, why someone didn't think of this before is beyond me.
That's right: it's a book that teaches kids the names of body parts. Using Frankenstein to demonstrate. With quotes from Mary Shelley's FRANKENSTEIN. Is it morbid? Maybe a little. Is it gross? Not at all.
Does my three-year-old love it? Yes, yes he does. He loves this book. He has loved all the Babylit book, but this one was a particular favorite for MONTHS after he got it. We had to take it to church each Sunday and he would go through it and name the parts over and over again. We got some strange looks. I couldn't care less. The book is great!
That's right: it's a book that teaches kids the names of body parts. Using Frankenstein to demonstrate. With quotes from Mary Shelley's FRANKENSTEIN. Is it morbid? Maybe a little. Is it gross? Not at all.
Does my three-year-old love it? Yes, yes he does. He loves this book. He has loved all the Babylit book, but this one was a particular favorite for MONTHS after he got it. We had to take it to church each Sunday and he would go through it and name the parts over and over again. We got some strange looks. I couldn't care less. The book is great!
September 4, 2025
Very cute board book with an adorably quirky Victor Frankenstein learning what parts of the body he needs to assemble to construct his Creature. And for each body part, there's an illustration of the Creature using it: his hand holding a daisy, for instance (sinister if you know the 1931 movie, but innocent if you don't).
August 12, 2020
Rowan has grown to like this one even more recently. He always liked it, but he gets more involved with it now. And he loves when you identify the body parts in the book and then on him. Then he’ll yell, “EYEBALL!” and “FEET!” Usually we have to read it twice now. A great first book to read before bed, because it’s fun and interactive. Then you switch to mellower things to soothe him toward sleep.
December 13, 2022
SHUT UP THIS IS TOTALLY FOR A KID AND NOT FOR ME.
Okay, it's for me. But c'mon. I am a sucker for anything Frankenstein, and this uses the building of the monster to teach babies body parts. It also has a couple of related quotes from Shelley's book, and I love it. So it doesn't teach nose. So what? IT HAS ADORABLE SCIENCE-Y PICTURES AND I LOVE IT.
Okay, it's for me. But c'mon. I am a sucker for anything Frankenstein, and this uses the building of the monster to teach babies body parts. It also has a couple of related quotes from Shelley's book, and I love it. So it doesn't teach nose. So what? IT HAS ADORABLE SCIENCE-Y PICTURES AND I LOVE IT.
February 14, 2021
Not bad. And fairly applicable to kids.
December 22, 2018
Book #71 for 2018
Humor Challenge #9
The delightful Kiersten White read this to us at Old Firehouse Books this evening as we were waiting for time to start her event.
I really, really want to count this for the "fairy tale retelling" task on reading challenges.
I'll update this review later. I'm mainly just writing it now because Goodreads can't shelve anything properly today and the app won't let me set a finished date.
Update:
This little kiddie book was great for a few minutes of entertainment. It's not for everybody, but I can personally think of several parents who would get a huge kick out of sharing it with their kiddos. No, it's not a comprehensive catalog of body parts, but if that bothers you, you're totally missing the point. The point is that it's bizarre and tosses around sometimes grotesque literary quotes and allusions with reckless abandon.
Humor Challenge #9
The delightful Kiersten White read this to us at Old Firehouse Books this evening as we were waiting for time to start her event.
I really, really want to count this for the "fairy tale retelling" task on reading challenges.
I'll update this review later. I'm mainly just writing it now because Goodreads can't shelve anything properly today and the app won't let me set a finished date.
Update:
This little kiddie book was great for a few minutes of entertainment. It's not for everybody, but I can personally think of several parents who would get a huge kick out of sharing it with their kiddos. No, it's not a comprehensive catalog of body parts, but if that bothers you, you're totally missing the point. The point is that it's bizarre and tosses around sometimes grotesque literary quotes and allusions with reckless abandon.
October 3, 2014
This book would have been much better for it's intended audience if it stuck to just being a basic primer of anatomy with the cute illustrations. However, the direct quote from the book will be lost on the kids and might even confuse them. Heck, even some of the parents might not get the references. But I do like the pictures.
November 10, 2014
I'm getting kind of sick of the BabyLit series. This one uses Frankenstein and his monster to teach anatomy. However, the publishers didn't have enough pages to cover all the parts . . . so, for example, we learn head and eyes but not nose. Come on! I also didn't like the colors used to illustrate the book.
April 28, 2015
Delightful! Little Miss Shelley plays a happy Dr. Frankenstein building a happy Monster one body part at a time. Each part is shown filling out a diagram, and being used by the Monster. (To use his head, he reads Paradise Lost by Milton! He used his legs to climb a mountain, and his hands to pick flowers, which he shares with Dr. F.) This may be the happiest Frankenstein story I've seen.
May 24, 2015
This is a really cute series. Smart and imaginative. The series took forever to catch on and still requires some major handselling and word of mouth. It really is a gem among board books.
January 5, 2022
Seriously, why hasn't anyone capitalized on using Frankenstein's monster to teach anatomy?
The art on the cover holds up through the entire book, and I love flipping through them! It is so cute and easy to process for very young kids that this will be my go-to anatomy book (anything to save me from that annoying "Head Shoulders Knees & Toes" song...).
The art on the cover holds up through the entire book, and I love flipping through them! It is so cute and easy to process for very young kids that this will be my go-to anatomy book (anything to save me from that annoying "Head Shoulders Knees & Toes" song...).
March 5, 2018
Great for early body part recognition but I wish it incorporated a bit more of the origin story. Part of the appeal for this collection of books was the throwback to the classics and this one just seems to use Frankenstein as an object to learn body parts.
December 27, 2019
this was one of Isaac's favorite bedtime reads during the month of October. in case you can't tell, Isaac has a bit of an addictive personality, and when he has a favorite, he has a FAVORITE. and we read it over and over and OVER again. hahahaha.
August 26, 2020
For: lit fans; readers wanting a book that is an intro to parts of the body.
Possible red flags: the quotes are a little jarring out of context; doesn't really fit with the original story (if readers are coming for a Frankenstein retelling).
Possible red flags: the quotes are a little jarring out of context; doesn't really fit with the original story (if readers are coming for a Frankenstein retelling).
February 15, 2024
Adams Adventure #15
Baby Lit #11
Well another intriguing way to introduce a concept, this time body parts.
I'm not sure all parents would be excited about their little ones seeing Frankenstein, but it is essentially just a book naming parts of the body.
Baby Lit #11
Well another intriguing way to introduce a concept, this time body parts.
I'm not sure all parents would be excited about their little ones seeing Frankenstein, but it is essentially just a book naming parts of the body.
July 19, 2024
Genius concept. Every time you read a body part, it is added to Frankenstein's (monster's) blank body. A brilliant addition. I would have been fully on board just having the single word and single body part. Just, chef's kiss.
December 13, 2024
Imaginario muy original y que abre la puerta a los lectores a los libros de no-ficción más tradicionales.
Con un esquema en la página izquierda que ser repite siempre, cada página derecha enseña una actividad en la que se usa una parte del cuerpo concreta.
Con un esquema en la página izquierda que ser repite siempre, cada página derecha enseña una actividad en la que se usa una parte del cuerpo concreta.
June 3, 2017
A little advanced for babies, but older toddlers and pre-schoolers could enjoy!
February 23, 2018
This is a board book that introduces anatomy... I love it!
September 26, 2018
So cute 😀
October 12, 2018
Fun illustrations to teach about body parts, but could have more of a story
December 27, 2018
Alison Oliver's art is mostly garbage. Some of it is okay. If it had better art these books wouldn't be so bad. I feel they are more for adults than babies/toddlers
January 22, 2019
If you are a fan of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, you’ll probably appreciate this board book about basic body parts shown via Frankenstein’s monster.
February 12, 2019
One of my son's favorites!
April 1, 2019
great for infants .
February 4, 2020
This was one TJ asked for over and over.
June 15, 2020
Les parties du corps. Collection avec les classiques de la littérature.
August 12, 2020
Once again, a lovely classic parody by Jennifer Adams. I adore these and plan to own each spooky one.
December 10, 2020
This is a perfect book for discussing your body parts, along with zany pictures of Frankenstein's monster.
July 23, 2021
Es el mejor libro -M
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews