View source for At The Animal Ball by Ella Bailey

{{infobox2
|title=At The Animal Ball
|author=Ella Bailey
|reviewer=Lorraine McDonald
|genre=For Sharing
|summary= Flip flap fun with a menagerie of animals who are having a ball. Join in the dancing in this interactive book drawing on the parlour game classic 'heads, bodies, tails'. Beautifully produced. Engaging activity for the infant school child.
|rating=4
|buy=Maybe
|borrow=Yes
|pages=26
|publisher=Ivy Press
|date=April 2015
|isbn= 978-1782402305
|aznuk=1782402306
|aznus=1782402306
|cover=1782402306  
}}

The animals are having a ball. Join them as they 'dance and roar',
'flutter a fan' then 'tap your toes on the floor'. This is flip flap
fun in the parlour game tradition of 'heads, bodies, tails'. On
Midsummer's Eve a veritable menagerie of very cute animals in what
appear to be a range of national costumes, are assembling to bounce,
shimmy, swagger and stroll. You can mix the animals up by flipping the
flaps but watch out! Moving the pages out of sequence also mixes up
the dance moves. Join in and keep up!

Mummy loves this book.  From the seventeen sweetly painted animals to
the soft corners of the cover. The pages that Chinchilla, Gazelle and
Hare dance on are glossy and thick, and Badger's twirl will not be
impeded by clunky binding, for the spine is sturdy and the flaps move
smoothly.  The ball goers are illustrated, bodies intact, cavorting on
the front inner leaf. I can look at those pictures for a very long
time.

Daddy loves this book. He didn't surrender it until every animal was
perused and every flap was flipped.  The artwork is lovely. The layout
is thoughtful, right down to the pretty borders around the text,
different for each animal and a helpful indicator that an animal has
their body parts intact. The grown-ups didn't try it, but the concept
of joining in with the moves encourages interaction. It is always good
to see a book that goes beyond a simple narrative.

Little boy? Pearls before toddlers is the expression that springs to
mind. Ignore him. I'd recommend this for the three to seven age range.
Small children but big enough to 'get' the idea and whimsy of muddled
up bodies. Whilst not wanting to play to any tired stereotypes, I
suspect the costumes and slightly cutesy style may appeal more to
girls than to boys.  I will store this one safely for a year or two
and test that theory out.

For more flip-flap animal fun likely to appeal to slightly older
children, try [[Remarkable Animals by Tony Meeuwissen]].  Ella Bailey also illustrated [[I Don't Know What to Call My Cat by Simon Philip and Ella Bailey|I Don't Know What to Call My Cat by Simon Philip]].

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