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TouchThinkLearn: Fly!
A bird arrives, alights on a tree, finds a mate, and builds a nest. Soon its eggs will hatch and one brave hatchling will embark on its first flight. A deceptively simple and joyful celebration of the natural cycle of life, this book adds the bonus of removable—and movable—characters and scenery to the bestselling TouchThinkLearn format, featuring the hallmark production technique of glued-on pieces dovetailing with die-cut openings. In this first narrative title in the series, the movable pieces invite and involve the reader in a meaningful and multisensory participation in the story.
14 pages, Board Book
Published March 7, 2017
45 people want to read
About the author
Xavier Deneux
319 books25 followersXavier Deneux studied at Beaux-Arts de Paris. He has worked as a graphic artist, creating posters and decorations for various industries, and has illustrated more than forty children's books. He lives and works in Paris, France.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 9, 2017
A bird alights on a tree after a long journey. It's spring and the bird decides to stay. Soon the tree has leaves and apples. Along comes another bird, who has also come from far away. Soon, the two birds are building an nest together, to shelter their eggs, which soon crack and out come two baby chicks. When they grow bigger, the baby birds are encouraged to fly aways on their own. Fly! is a nice cycle of life book for young readers. The illustrations are spare and it is an interactive book. Some of the die-cut characters, scenery, even the sun can be removed from one page and replaced on the facing page to make a new scene, inviting the reader to participate and speculate about what is happening and why. The removable parts of this books are done in thick cardboard with plenty of space for little finger to remove and replace them and they fit snuggly enough without being difficult to maneuver.
February 1, 2018
Cute, simple illustrations, some of which are like puzzle pieces and can be moved from one place, to a matching place on the facing page.
February 15, 2017
Super clever!
February 24, 2017
~ review copy from publisher
I LOVE this book. It's so cute and clever. In fact, it has so much to offer that I'm a bit flummoxed about where to begin.
When I first saw FLY I thought it was a lift-the-flap book about an adorable little bird. It's not though. It's a puzzle/manipulate-the-shape book! When you open up each set of pages what you'll see are the drawings and text. On the first page, for example, you see the cute little yellow bird. On the second page there is a newly budding tree... AND a shape indentation. When you read this with your little one they will be able to take the little bird shape from the left hand page and put it into the corresponding 'indentation' on the right hand page.
Other pages have two shapes that children will need to manipulate to make a nest, for example. And yet other pages work the exact opposite. They will take the shapes, one by one, and move them from right page to left.
This is such a lovely and interesting story and I really like that there is some eye-hand manipulation. I also adore (of course) that there some science. In this book the little yellow bird meets a little red bird and together they hatch two eggs.
Moms (dads/grands/etc.) who want to can use FLY as an opportunity to discuss Spring and the seasons, as well as how birds make nests, and little birds fledge.
5 Star Edu-tainment. I don't generally give star ratings to books I get as review copies --just because-- but this book is one I love sharing.
I LOVE this book. It's so cute and clever. In fact, it has so much to offer that I'm a bit flummoxed about where to begin.
When I first saw FLY I thought it was a lift-the-flap book about an adorable little bird. It's not though. It's a puzzle/manipulate-the-shape book! When you open up each set of pages what you'll see are the drawings and text. On the first page, for example, you see the cute little yellow bird. On the second page there is a newly budding tree... AND a shape indentation. When you read this with your little one they will be able to take the little bird shape from the left hand page and put it into the corresponding 'indentation' on the right hand page.
Other pages have two shapes that children will need to manipulate to make a nest, for example. And yet other pages work the exact opposite. They will take the shapes, one by one, and move them from right page to left.
This is such a lovely and interesting story and I really like that there is some eye-hand manipulation. I also adore (of course) that there some science. In this book the little yellow bird meets a little red bird and together they hatch two eggs.
Moms (dads/grands/etc.) who want to can use FLY as an opportunity to discuss Spring and the seasons, as well as how birds make nests, and little birds fledge.
5 Star Edu-tainment. I don't generally give star ratings to books I get as review copies --just because-- but this book is one I love sharing.
May 5, 2017
I’m a big fan of Xavier Deneux’s TouchThinkLearn series, and previously I’ve reviewed Colors and Opposites, two titles in the series. So I was thrilled to receive a copy of the newest title, called Fly!
In Fly!, a little bird meets a mate and together they build a nest. Soon after they tend two eggs in that nest until the eggs hatch, the baby birds grow, and finally, one takes its first flight. It’s a beautifully simple story that tunes little ones into the natural world just outside their bedroom window.
What I really love about Fly! is that each page not only features cut-out images, which the series is known for, but some of those images have puzzle pieces that can be removed from one page and inserted into a spot on the next page.
Fly! inside pageFor example, the opening pages say, “Bird arrived at the foot of the tree. It was the end of a very long journey.” The left-hand page features a cloud shape and a simple yellow bird with a red beak and red feet. The right hand page shows an illustration of dirt with grass, and a tree sprouting green leaves. A bird-sized cutout sits at the bottom of the tree, so a toddler can move the bird from its place on one page to the puzzle cutout on the other.
It’s the kind of hands-on involvement that toddlers love in books and that teaches gross motor skills at the same time. Here, children can pretend they make the bird fly, on other pages they can move the sun in the sky, build a nest, and watch eggs crack.
Will the puzzle pieces last? When dealing with toddlers it’s likely that the pieces will eventually bend, but the cutouts seem tight enough to hold them in place through many readings. I highly recommend TouchThinkLearn: Fly! for ages 2 to 4.
The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
In Fly!, a little bird meets a mate and together they build a nest. Soon after they tend two eggs in that nest until the eggs hatch, the baby birds grow, and finally, one takes its first flight. It’s a beautifully simple story that tunes little ones into the natural world just outside their bedroom window.
What I really love about Fly! is that each page not only features cut-out images, which the series is known for, but some of those images have puzzle pieces that can be removed from one page and inserted into a spot on the next page.
Fly! inside pageFor example, the opening pages say, “Bird arrived at the foot of the tree. It was the end of a very long journey.” The left-hand page features a cloud shape and a simple yellow bird with a red beak and red feet. The right hand page shows an illustration of dirt with grass, and a tree sprouting green leaves. A bird-sized cutout sits at the bottom of the tree, so a toddler can move the bird from its place on one page to the puzzle cutout on the other.
It’s the kind of hands-on involvement that toddlers love in books and that teaches gross motor skills at the same time. Here, children can pretend they make the bird fly, on other pages they can move the sun in the sky, build a nest, and watch eggs crack.
Will the puzzle pieces last? When dealing with toddlers it’s likely that the pieces will eventually bend, but the cutouts seem tight enough to hold them in place through many readings. I highly recommend TouchThinkLearn: Fly! for ages 2 to 4.
The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
October 23, 2017
A little yellow bird concludes her journey in a tree, where she builds a nest with the help from a male red bird she meets. Two eggs hatch and grow until finally, they learn to fly to build their own nests. This simple gentle story is illustrated with artwork that makes large use of circles, semi-circles, and pie-shapes and a cheerful color palette of yellow, brown, olive green, and orange-red.
A well-designed concept board book with sturdy removable pieces to encourage interaction by toddlers, making it a bridge between book and puzzle/toy. Great to help develop fine motor skills, the child can remove a piece from one page and move it over to the cut out area on the page facing it as the story progresses.
Libraries who are hesitant to order this book might consider either not circulating the book (keeping it out on a shelf for the public to access while in the library) or by attaching a small ribbon to each loose piece and the book, allowing enough length of ribbon so each piece can be moved from one page to the next. [My solution would be to affix a length of matching color ribbon using booktape to one side of the piece, then tucking and gluing the other end of the ribbon into the top of the spine of the book. Will it look messy? Perhaps, but seeing the joy each child will have playing with this sturdy book will be worth the extra effort processing the book and prolong its life on library shelves.
A well-designed concept board book with sturdy removable pieces to encourage interaction by toddlers, making it a bridge between book and puzzle/toy. Great to help develop fine motor skills, the child can remove a piece from one page and move it over to the cut out area on the page facing it as the story progresses.
Libraries who are hesitant to order this book might consider either not circulating the book (keeping it out on a shelf for the public to access while in the library) or by attaching a small ribbon to each loose piece and the book, allowing enough length of ribbon so each piece can be moved from one page to the next. [My solution would be to affix a length of matching color ribbon using booktape to one side of the piece, then tucking and gluing the other end of the ribbon into the top of the spine of the book. Will it look messy? Perhaps, but seeing the joy each child will have playing with this sturdy book will be worth the extra effort processing the book and prolong its life on library shelves.
February 25, 2025
This is book is a cute activity for little kids, but if you don’t take the time to put everything back right after you read it, then it doesn’t really elevate the story when you read it the next time.
September 19, 2017
Nice story, but not library-friendly. Will not replace once it is damaged, which will probably happen fairly quickly!
May 2, 2018
I think this one will be a lot of fun for the kids to play with in storytime! I'd recommend it for small groups so everyone has a turn to move the pieces.
December 28, 2018
This is such a cute book! Unfortunately our library copy was missing several pieces but my son still really enjoyed what was left.
January 17, 2019
This was okay.
January 24, 2019
3.5 stars
October 7, 2021
What a clever little board book! Part book, part puzzle. A fun and interactive book. My 6 yr old fell in love with it. Can't wait to check our more books from this series.
February 16, 2017
As another reviewer pointed out, this interesting board book has many pieces that can be lost if it were circulated in a library; thus, I would suggest using it at home or in a one-on-one setting. The pieces wouldn't cause me not to want to use it, but I'd hate to have pieces missing. A bird lands on a tree, starts feeling comfortable, attracts a mate, builds a nest, lays two eggs, watches them hatch, and then sends one off on its own while the other little one watches it fly away. The process of learning to fly and leaving one nest for another is a bit more complicated than that, but the book uses simple shapes and bright colors to tell the basic story of a bird's life. Because pieces can be removed in order for young readers to touch them and explore the areas that are hollowed out, reading this book truly is a tactile experience. New parents will certainly want to collect all of the books created by this author-illustrator for sharing with their offspring. The adults will enjoy the books just as much as their youngsters.
February 19, 2017
I really love this kind of sensory meets story book.
February 5, 2017
A bird, a tree, a nest, an egg, a bird. Bright simple colors and shapes for the young board book audience with removable thick shapes on one page with a recessed opening on the other page of the spread for the child to fit the piece into. Story participation becomes tangible. ;) A better book for home purchase than library circulation due to the removable pieces.
February 8, 2017
Adorable board book for our young readers - but lots of little pieces - might be best as your favorite book at home - NOT a library book! :)
April 22, 2017
Love the interactive nature, moving the cutout pieces, but they will get lost much too quickly.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews