Black on White

All Ages

Birth - 12 months

Black on White

by Tana Hoban

Share these familiar shapes with your baby. It is never too early to look and talk together.

Age: Birth-12 months | Title: Black on White | Author: Tana Hoban | Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Share these familiar shapes with your baby. It is never too early to look and talk together.

Why we chose this book

Here is a fabulous little book with no words, just pictures. Every photograph is totally black, printed in high gloss ink, and presented on a totally white background. So this should be baby's first book about shapes. The book is fascinating just in its presentation, and the absence of all color makes the artwork compelling.

As soon as your baby can focus on an object, this book should be intriguing. Try taking your baby's fingers and tracing the edges of each picture. By the time your child turns one, you should be able to relate the pictures to a concept a child understands. This is a perfect book for starting to engage with the external world.

The black ink is so glossy that it reflects light. My granddaughter Ella loves to just stare at her reflection. The book is designed to be used for extremely short periods of time. So even a few minutes of interaction with the book has been a satisfying experience for both of us.

--Barney

About the author

Tana Hoban's photographs have been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York and in galleries around the world. She has won many gold medals and prizes for her work as a photographer and filmmaker. Her books for children are known and loved throughout the world.