Tap! Tap! Tap!: Dance! Dance! Dance!

by Hervé Tullet

Read, play, and DANCE on the pages of this interactive and definitely out-of-the box picture book from the creator of Press Here !

New from the New York Times bestselling creator Hervé Tullet! Harnessing his love of dance, the passion of his illustrations, and the great big format of this book, Hervé invites you to a very special your hand becoming the dancer and the book the dance floor.

Starting with a gentle glide, growing in complexity and animation, finally building to a crescendo of color, action, and movement—here's a book perfect for kids bursting with energy. A celebration not only of releasing emotion but also of carefully controlling motion and dexterity. It's the perfect activity for getting your ya-yas out and a welcome boon for parents, gift-givers, and teachers looking for an ultra-creative way of channeling energy.

THE MAGIC OF HERVÉ, Hervé's bold primary colors, interactive thinking, and remarkable gift to have his readers actively participate in his books are back in this newest offering!

​A LARGE DANCE Featuring a larger size specially designed to allow children to actually fit—and move—their hands freely on the page.

BUILDING Readers will delight in exploring all the ways their hands can move, a subliminal but essential lesson in improving dexterity—a critical foundational skill.

CREATIVE Combining rhythm, motion and shapes, here's a great tool for arts education that will appeal to parents/educators looking to build their children's skills of creative thinking and discovery.

Perfect

Genres: Picture Books, Storytime, Childrens, Art, Fiction, Juvenile, International

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2022

About the author

Hervé Tullet is the creator of more than fifty children’s books, including Press Here, which has been translated into twenty-seven languages. He loves to provoke surprise with his books, as well as in the dynamic workshops that he takes part in. He lives in Paris and is celebrated internationally for his playful, inventive, and interactive storytelling.

Reviews

[Tessa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Does not capture the same fun and interactivity as Press Here. At all. My 4 year old loves Press Here and requests it often. This one you can’t follow along like Press Here. Every time we turned the page we were like, what? What are we supposed to do here? I guess the idea is you flutter your hands around but it’s just not clear. Feels like the author tried to ride the wave of earlier success but didn’t try hard enough to actually write a fun book.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In his latest innovative picture book, Hervé Tullet, the creator of Press Here! (2011) and Mix It Up! (2014) and other playful interactive picture books, directs the young reader to place their hand on the blue handprint on the first page, wiggle their fingers gently to warm them up, and then explore color, form, and movement as they follow the narrator’s directions to use their hand to dance across the pages of this oversize book. After tap, tap, tapping on circles; “whooshing” in a circle around the edge of a double-page spread; making “loop the loops,” circles, and spirals by following and jumping around the bold forms in primary colors, the reader is invited to start all over again! Hervé Tullet lives in France. (PreS Up)

[Jennie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with Tullet's previous books, this book is designed to actively engage young readers in exploring the pages. A large format with a solid cover and silky pages that combine swathes of white space with vibrant blue, red and yellow paint to represent hands moving, following, swirling, prodding and tapping over the pages. Clear, at times challenging block texts instruct and lead the actions: "Hit it! Three times: TAP! TAP! TAP! The show is about to begin."
Great fun and stimulating, but definitely a book for clean hands and home ownership - despite the sturdy design it would not last long in a library.

[Cheryl · Rating 1 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Press Here and many other interactive and meta books. But wtf, how does one even follow this? First page instructs one to 'close your eyes and concentrate.' Period. What is the cue to lift the hand, open the eyes, turn the page? 'Press all the dots on the page.' That's a lot of dots! I don't understand how to decode it. Maybe if adult and child each have a copy of their own? Or adult has the text, and child has the pictures?

Did the other reviewers actually *test* it? I did; I was excited to *play* as I do every time I read Press Here. But I could not decode it.

[Sandy Brehl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tullet has created some of the most iconic and innovative picture books. Many of the earliest titles were hand-sized, working perfectly for the concepts developed. In this case the book is ideally oversized to share with a group, or a child on a lap. The assumption (and minimal text) direct the child to a lively interaction of ways to touch, tap, move hands, and experience color,msize, shape, directional and other core concepts while having a terrific time~! IU could even imagine a child (on repeated readings) trying to follow the pages with a toe, or elbow. This is a winner for the youngest and for early/preschool.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I used this for a group storytime, and it worked out pretty well but I had to modify it pretty heavily. This is made for one-on-one (or maybe two) sharing. The readers are supposed to tap the pages, which is really hard to do in a large group setting. So instead of having the audience tap the pages, I had them do hand or full-body motions where they were. It worked out better than I thought it would, although if I were to do it again, I would maybe incorporate more body parts.

So this isn't really a review of the book as is, but rather a reflection on what this book inspired: an exhausting, but fun storytime exercise.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

First sentence: Ready? Place your hand here. Close your eyes. Concentrate. Wiggle your fingers gently to warm them up. Heads up, your turn now....

Premise/plot: This is an "interactive" book that may [or may not] appeal to young children. It invites them to follow the instructions of the book, be directed by the illustrations. It is written in second person, present tense.

My thoughts: I may not be the right audience for this one. I wanted to be. I just wasn't. I do think it has potential to appeal to young ones. (As do most books). I think if there was more tapping and less swooshing or sweeping, it might have been more enjoyable to me.

[McKenzie Richardson · Rating 3 out of 5]

For more bookish opinions, visit my blog: Craft-Cycle

A fun, interactive book that sends your hands dancing. The book becomes the dance floor and you are the star.

Turn the page and follow the actions to explore movement, creativity, and art. Great for learning and practicing verbs such as twirl, bounce, weave, freeze, and fall, adjectives like light, wild, big, small, slow, fast, and graceful, and primary colors.

The artwork is engaging and helps guide the actions. Nice way to get some energy out and engage with art. Makes for a really fun one-on-one reading experience.

[Ethan Hayn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tap! Tap! Tap! by Herve Tullet is an engaging, interactive children's book that encourages the readers to physically interact with the pages. The book has very minimal text with vibrant colours and shapes. Children (or adults) are invited to tap the pages, shake the book, or blow on it which creates a playful and immersive experience. The rhythmic, hands-on nature of the book will keep young children engaged while fostering creativity, which has the potential to spark some music-making too! A wonderfully fun and imaginative read for children, sparking curiosity and joy in storytelling.

[Great Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated with vibrant colors, this book becomes the setting of a dance for little hands. Interactive and creative, this is another book from this author that will have children following directions, building language skills, and highly motivating them to keep turning the pages to continue the fun!

Reviewer # 2

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Large sized board book covered with heavy, shiny paper pages. An active book.
Hands and fingers are used to trace over the primary colors on the page--lines and dots. It's almost like dry finger painting. It's a lot like dancing.
My 2-year-old reacted with delight as we moved our hands. Of course, movement sound went along with that. We even did a little dancing later on.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoy using your hands in all kinds of new ways by reading Tap! Tap! Tap!: Dance! Dance! Dance! Children's ages 1 - 8 will want to read Herve Tullet's new book over and over again so they can find new ways to turn pages, create magic, and enjoy a book with their favorite grownups! Parents and kids will appreciate the author's delighful ways of helping kids practice small and large motor skills!

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not nearly as clever as Press Here or Mix It Up this one just has a lot of random instructions and colors on the page without any real coherence to what the kid/reader is supposed to do. I love the others and have used them often in story time, this one I'm not so sure would work well in a group.

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take your fingers for a dance through a book, and, on the way, you just might learn colors and shapes and lots of lovely other things that parents and teachers and other important people want you to learn. And all while just having fun.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

More primary colored, interactive goodness from Hervé Tullet. The oversized format of this book is fun and refreshing, but the more complex instructions may make this better as a lap read than a storytime book.

[Victoria Whipple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tullet does it again, with an interactive book that is so much fun, while at the same time being educational in so many ways. Bright, primary colors on the white background, along with the oversized pages not only invite but heartily welcome readers in.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another interactive picture book by Hervé Tullet. This time little ones are encouraged to dance with their hands -- tapping, touching and moving their hands all over the page. This large sized picture book is ideal for one-on-one sharing.

[Alondra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is fun! And if each page is taken as a different activity/instruction, it makes sense. But if a child is more literal, or you've been working on procedural directions, this might be a tough sell.

Shelved on storytime, but more for small group interactions.

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

This whole series is great and you can keep coming back to it! The first time Littles just like the colors but now she's old enough to follow the directions do a degree so it was much more enjoyable. I'll be sure to get it again some time next year too ^_^

[Lynnette · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 15 month old seems a little young for this, but I think it has potential to be fun when he's older. He can do a few of the tapping things now, but gets bored quickly. This looks like a pretty cool interactive book for older toddlers though.

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Boni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three and a half stars

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 4-year-old granddaughter really enjoyed it. Tullet's books are great.

[Y.Poston]

a delightfully active book that
uses primary colors to enliven
the action

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Large, sturdy, interactive book that encourages motor and listening skills.

[Elizabeth]

I didn't think this was as successful as some of the previous titles, but maybe I need to see it "in action" from someone who "gets" it more than I do.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love how interactive this book is!

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a little disappointed. It seemed like this would inspire more whole body movement. However, kids will enjoy moving their hands across the pages as they tap, and spiral, and swoop.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

An invitation for little hands to "dance" across the pages. Great fun to read with a lap-sitter.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting interactive book. I'm sure there are tons of storytime projects one could do related to this story.