Hello, World!: Happy County Book 1

Happy County #1

by Ethan Long

Hello, World! is a vibrant, graphic picture book compendium for preschoolers set in a Richard Scarry-inspired environment by Geisel Award-winning creator Ethan Long.

Welcome to Happy County, where everyone is out and about! The Bright Brothers are testing their newest invention. Hannah the Handywoman is hunting for her hammer. And Mr. Rhinehorn is just trying to get some sleep!

This primer compendium is chock-full of lovable characters—from Tina Tusker the County Commissioner to Dottie the Dog Walker and Cheese Louise—living in a busy, spirited world full of landmark early-childhood subjects: first words, colors, numbers, shapes, simple maps, naps, school, and plenty of funny scenarios to keep little ones turning the pages. Interactive and on point for the preschool audience.

Christy Ottaviano Books

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Humor, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Counting

48 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 2020

About the author

Ethan Long is a popular, award-winning and internationally recognized children's book author and illustrator with over 70 children's books, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and an Emmy-nominated television series to his credit. Just about all of his awake time is spent writing stories, drawing pictures and spending time with his family. Since graduating from Ringling College of Art and Design in 1991, Ethan has never stopped evolving, challenging his creative approach with each new project while constantly honing his instantly identifiable style. Born and raised in Central Pennsylvania, his childhood memories serve as inspiration for many of his drawings and stories. He currently lives with his wife and three children in beautiful Orlando, Florida, USA and flip flops seamlessly between being a world famous children's book author and a stay-at-home dad.

Reviews

[Ethan & Isaac · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books that you can see new things each time you read it. I especially enjoyed the baseball pages.

[Gabrielle Stoller · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a fun book that teaches about civil servants and their community and it being a seek and find to boot!

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun book that allows plenty of interactions with readers. Thinks Scarry's Busy World style.
Long offers specific challenges on most pages and offers more detailed illustrations to further explore the book.

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first in the new Happy County series, this picture book invites plenty of exploration by readers. The bright colored and vibrant pages are filled with details for children to explore. The text in the book invites readers to look for specific things, but it’s also great fun to just explore this world on your own too. Some pages are filled with noises, others with a quest for a great spot to nap, still others with restaurants with signs to match. Turning the page may reveal an up-close look at a specific character or a wider view of the entire community.

Inspired by Richard Scarry, this updated version is brighter and funnier. It also offers a wider variety of activities to engage in. The text is funny, filled with puns, and has a merry tone that invites readers to really have fun. The illustrations are colorful and filled with marvelous details yet still have a simpler feel to them.

A great book for a trip, this one will keep children happily busy for some time. Worth exploring together too! Appropriate for ages 4-6.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Happy County is a busy, busy place, and its animal residents are active and happy all day long. In eighteen different installments, each two pages in length, readers are introduced to its citizens as they go about various tasks or pursue different interests. There are amateur ornithologists, a handywoman, musicians, and even a runaway chick who scampers over several pages. Observant readers will delight in the puns and word play throughout the text and illustrations; for instance, a moving van is labeled "EWE-HAUL," and there are various examples of onomatopoeia on display here. Even the conceit that each day "ends on a happy note" (p. 43) is likely to make young readers smile. Featuring brightly-colored graphite illustrations that were then digitally scanned, this large picture book can serve as a good introduction to many topics for youngsters, including animal sounds, the layout of a neighborhood, types of birds, and places to eat.

[Teresa Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cheerful, colorful book is part informational, look-and-find, and graphic novel all rolled into one. Its target audience is preschool to first grade student. Look-and-find books are very popular in our school's library, so I know children will enjoy the book for that feature alone. I liked that in addition to finding items, the author has added finding shapes and colors. The comic strip sections are funny and tie in with the adjoining pages. My one, slight, criticism is that the narrative is at a much higher reading level than the target audience. A young child will need someone to read along with them. Reading with someone is never a bad idea though, so that has its advantages too. Overall a great book.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Welcome to Happy County. Take a tour and meet the people, businesses, and types of activities that go on there. Along the way readers get to hunt for a missing chick, identify shapes and colors, match things, practice their reading, and meet the zany characters who live in Happy County.

This would be a great read for bored little kids. There are tons of different activities as you read, and you can easily play your own I spy games on all the busy page spreads. There are words that label tons of things on different spreads, plus funny situations various residents find themselves in to give kids the giggles. It's also a great introduction to the various aspects of a community from the people in government to the average citizen. Definitely entertaining.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The layout of this book reminds me of some of the Richard Scary books - very nice bright illustrations with items labelled.
Presented in chapters, Hello world! focuses on Happy County and the various citizens and their activities.
Chapters:
1. Welcome to Happy County;
2. Greetings;
3. The Scenic Route;
4. Bird Search;
5. Hannah the Handywoman;
6. Our Town;
7. It's Nap Time!;
8. Neighborhood Noises;
9. At School;
10. Dottie the Dog Walker;
11. At the Dog Park;
12. Cheese Louise!;
13. Bon Apetit!;
14. Ballpark Franky;
15. Music is Everywhere!;
16. The Bright Brothers;
17. The County Fair;
18. You Are Now Leaving Happy County.

[Nicola · Rating 2 out of 5]

We didn't really enjoy this. It's kind of like a disjointed look-and-find aimed more at pre-schoolers with mini comics mixed in. It would have made more sense if it were based on a tv show with characters that kids were already familiar with.

Miss 5 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors

[Beverly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possible contender for the Mock Caldecott Awards. More like an activity book than a bedtime story. This will give you tons of opportunities to help your child learn and get involved. There are colors, shapes, characters and other items to be found on every page. And considering it's Happy County #1, we can expect more of the same to come along. My favorite character, of course, was Miss Beverly who's a librarian!!!

[Cheriee Weichel · Rating 5 out of 5]

My sons were fans of Richard Scary books. This is a lot like those, except with a whole lot more humour. (Children might not get all the puns, but their parents most likely will!) I imagined reading this with my 4 1/2 year old grandchildren. I’m pretty sure they will love it.
If I was still in the library I would probably get a couple of copies of this to support primary teachers who do community projects with their students.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is enough of a story to compel kids to keep turning the pages, but this is also a fun book to just sit and stare at for a while, trace the roads, try to say all the words.

Kids as young as 3 will enjoy pointing at all of the details in the fun, cartoonish pictures, and kids just learning to read will enjoy the challenge of finding every single thing on the page and naming it.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's a real Richard Scarry vibe here, but it's totally it's own thing. Almost like an activity book, but there's enough info about the characters to spark the imagination about all their lives in Happy County. I normally skim through this sort of thing, but I found myself engaging with the activities despite myself. Well done!

[Lgordo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has persisted as my kids' favorite bed time book for a solid five months. No other book in the universe has achieved such persistent popularity (although The Book with No Pictures is close behind).

This book is fun to read, has a mildly educational component, and lots of fun easter eggs in the illustrations.

Highly recommend.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy County reminds me a whole lot of Richard Scarry's Busytown.

Characters are introduced by picture and name; many are also allowed to utter a tiny snippet of speech bubble.

Of course, there's humor. For instance: "Do not leave your keys on the cheese."

Children can learn a lot from this ambitious storybook. It presents a whole world, not only a county.

[Lisa Momblanco · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the book Hello World by Ethan Long!
I cannot wait to buy it when it comes out. My students were thrilled with the variety of pages and that there were pages that teach you while you are hunting for items! They have spent many reading sessions pouring over the pages.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 3-year-old daughter LOVED Hello, World! I loved it too. The illustrations were so detailed and fun, and the book teaches children lots of new vocabulary. We had a great time playing the I Spy game as we read the book and looked at the pictures. This is a book that could be read over and over.

[Pinky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hannah isn't very handy when it comes to hanging hooks. In Happy County kids go to school just like you. It's a good thing Dottie has a lot of arms to walk the dogs. Cheese Louise, be nice to your customers when selling cheese.

[Viviane Elbee]

Detailed illustrations on each page are fun for little ones to pore over. There are a lot of mini-sketches on this book, rather than one over- reaching story.

Some of the mini stories are funny and delightful.

[Jenn Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE this. Takes the Richard Scarry "compendium" style, makes that clear on the cover, and makes many of the pages into interactive games on top of that.

[Awjtf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful book!

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A busy, vibrant, graphic picture book compendium for preschoolers set in a Richard Scarry-inspired Happy County populated with a cast of cartoon animals with a penchant for making mischief.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a counting book. It's a find-it book. It's a happy book. It's a take-your-time-with-it book. It was fantastic.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This lively book is replete with colorful illustrations, engaging characters, alliteration, and fun details. Sure to be a hit with preschoolers and kindergarteners.

[Melanie Borski-Howard]

Great for PLAY and SING but it's long and would never work for storytime.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is fun, with lots in the illustrations and text to engage and interact with. I felt it was a bit scattered, though.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun-filled, updated version of the Richard Scarry busy world books. Has search-and-finds, vocabulary, counting, and more. Lends itself to many re-reads.

[Zach Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is like an updated “What Do People Do All Day?” by Richard Scarry - lots going on across an entire town with various jobs and lots of cool drawings.

[Melissa the Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a feast for the eyes! This is a great book for increasing your child's general knowledge of the world. Plus, the illustrations are just fabulous.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little bit of Richard Scarry, a touch of Herve Tullet and a bit of Where's Waldo. Fun book!