The popular children's song, "Baby Beluga" is just as endearing in book form. The pictures are vibrant and very detailed; even the water is flushed with bubbles and visible currents. The different sea animals are accurately portrayed with varying colors, wrinkles, whiskers, and fur. Your child will see a realistic marine setting as they travel with Baby Beluga while she discovers her independence. With board pages, the book is also just the right size for your little one to hold in his or her lap and practice turning the pages and following along.

Baby Baluga offers many bonding opportunities while reading. If your child is familiar with the song, you can sing it together while turning the pages, or you can sign the words while they hum along. The harmonic cadence and frequent rhymes will help your child learn the story, and they will soon be reciting it with you. Another great learning opportunity in this book is to stop and name the different animals together.

My four-year-old niece, Emily, likes to flip through the book on her own and let the pictures sweep away her imagination. She asked me once if we could take a trip to visit and become friends with Baby Beluga. I told her Baby Beluga is already her friend and she can swim with her any time by just closing her eyes and imagining it. Emily asked me to'swim' with her, so we wiggled around the living room pretending to swim with the whales. She brings this up every time we read the story together; I hope she remembers forever.

--Audra