Children will spend hours poring over it... An activity atlas that is perfect to get lost in.
Around the World with Mouk
Mouk is off on a world tour! He learns a lot on his trip, sending postcards to his friends along the way. An optional sticker game is included.
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Description
In Around the World with Mouk, Mouk is off on a world tour and he sends postcards back home to his friends about his trip. He learns a lot!
Hardback with a spongy cover and super-glossy, the book comes with a set of removable stickers.
Meet Mouk, a mellow little bear who takes his buddies by surprise when he sets off on an around-the-world adventure that will inspire kids to travel the world and discover different cultures. Bursting with colour and a zillion authentic details, Around the World with Mouk follows our loveable, laid-back hero as he travels through 11 vividly illustrated countries, meeting new friends and learning about new places. From every place he sends a postcard to his friends at home.
Children delight in discovering a world of realistic details on every page, and learn fun facts from the postcards. The front endpapers feature Mouk getting ready to leave and say goodbye to his friends, while the back endpapers show his return home and include extra anecdotes about his travels. And to make sure the travelling bear is never lost, readers and pre-readers can follow his journey across the map on the back of the book. An optional sticker game lets children learn more about each country in a fun, interactive way.
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Book Details
Country of Origin France Reader Age 2-5 year, 5-7 year, 6-8 year Book Size ISBN
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Reviews
Available worldwide from your local bookstore or online.
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The Daily Examiner, Australia, July 2010 –
BURSTING with colour and a zillion authentic
details, Around the World with
Mouk (Gecko Press $34.99) is this week’s
Fruity Bats Book of the Week.
The story follows lovable, laid-back Mouk
as he travels the world meeting new
friends and learning about different
countries and cultures.
Mouk’s a cute little yellow bear who
takes his buddies by surprise when he
announces he’s heading off on a big
overseas adventure. From France,
America, Japan, and Australia to Peru,
Greece, Lapland, India and Madagascar,
Mouk shares his experiences
with younger readers in an interesting
and factual way, but in an easy to
understand format full of excitement
and fun. There’s even a cool sticker
game at the back of the book.
Metro, December 2008 –
Around the World with Mouk [is] written with smaller people in mind and [has] a more cartoon-like illustrative style. Mouk (a bear, I think) invites us to follow on his ‘trail of adventure’; it’s rather like Richard Scarry on acid for those of us old enough to remember Lowly Worm and friends. It was a big hit with my three-year-old because of the rather gorgeous collection of stickers that comes with the book, which you can use in the story.
Otago Daily Times, 14 June 2008 –
Preschoolers will be fascinated by Around the World With Mouk. Mouk is a tiny bear who goes on a world adventure to discover 11 different cultures. In each country he meets new animal friends and learns abut the local environment, foods and social activities. Much of the information is in postcards and witty speech bubbles. Boutavant is French graphic artist who has created spectacular illustrations that are a cross between Richard Scarry and Hello Kitty. The pages are glossy, the colours intense, and the characters ooze cuteness. Children will embrace this particular cartoon style quicker than their parents. Removable stickers are a nice bonus.
Daily Chronicle, 14 July 2008 –
It’s easy to see why Lire Magazine chose this as one of the 20 best French children’s titles of 2007.
Mouk is a yellow little bear who takes everyone by surprise when he sets off to travel the world. An absolute interactive gem of a book, it will appeal to children of all ages and for adults to read and help younger ones with.
Every page explodes with colour and Mouk finds joy in discovering the cultures of 11 countries through the animals, people and plants, as well as delicious smells.
Described as an activity atlas, it is that and more. There is a map on the back cover and removable stickers to be placed on it, so that as well as reading the story children can actually follow Mouk’s journey. They can also see how items travel across the world – for example how a coconut sent on a journey in Madagascar ends up on Australia’s Kangaroo Island. Well worth its price, Around the World with Mouk is a book that can be bought as a gift from several people.
Around the Bookshops, August 2008 –
We know a treat is in store before this book, with its large
format, wonderfully squashy cover and bright colours, is
even opened. Inside, a small bear called Mouk takes us on
an equally colourful trip around the world but, of course,
doesn’t forget to send postcards home to his friends and
family. There are hours of looking and discussing here and
one has the feeling Linda Burgess must have really had fun
with her job of translating the words from the original
French. The reason this title, which was published in
March, was not in the last issue of Around the Bookshops, is
because I lent it to a small boy who couldn’t bear to give
it back.
Jazmin, a young reviewer, aged 7 3/4 –
This is a book about a bear called Mouk who travels around the world visiting old friends and meeting new ones. He has lots of adventures which he writes about to his friends back home. On each page he is visiting a new country and and his letters are full of interesting facts which teach you a lot about other countries and their way of life. The pictures are beautiful, cute and funny and there are lots of cool stickers to put on the pages. I really enjoyed this book and think kids of any age would love it too. Lots of love from Jazmin xxx
Jazmin reviewed this book on behalf of NZ Books Abroad
Michelle Dawson, The Marlborough Express, 6th May 2008 –
Readers can travel with Mouk through 11 countries where he meets new friends and experiences new cultures. The book is bursting with colour and detail…The front endpapers feature Mouk getting ready to leave and say goodbye to his friends while the back endpapers show his return home and
include extra information about his travels. Young readers can follow Mouk’s journey across the map on the back of the book. What I suspect will be the main appeal of this title are the pages of reusable coloured stickers that help
children learn more about each country. There is no doubt that Around the World with Mouk is colourful and appealing. It is a large format book with glossy pages.
Susan Paris, Booknotes, Winter 2008 –
Unlike every other title from Gecko Press, this one I don’t quite get. The publishers dub the book an ‘activity atlas’, and it kind of is, though deciphering the tiny font ranks alongside playing with the reusable stickers provided at the back. Mouk is a small bear determined to see the world, and the book – more of a travel album than an atlas – is a record of his trip. Impressions of culture
(mainly food and activities) generally take precedence, and while this is the obvious approach given the target audience, life in each of the eleven countries becomes a blur of affable characters piping cute remarks designed to capture something of the country in which they belong (‘I love this Banyan tree’, ‘You play the vahila so well’, ‘How come you always win at Mah Jong?’). Postcards from Mouk complete the picture, the extra information still very relaxed in tone: (‘My friend Elena was waiting at the wharf for my water-taxi. I
called out Yassou to everyone, even some dried octopus hanging on a clothesline.’) Not as clean as Richard Scarry – though there’s some influence – the artwork is busy, which kids will no doubt love. Fun and definitely unique, with a favourable track record in it’s native France.
Anne Packer, The Dominion Post Indulgence, 14th June 2008 –
Think Richard Scarry for the new millenium – Around the World with Mouk follows a cuddly French bear on his big OE as he learns to greet the locals on every continent in their own language, sampling the cuisine along the way. Greece, Africa, Lapland, India, China, Madagascar all feature in this high-gloss picture book, complete with padded cover and removable stickers. Chock-full of the sort of detail kids love … it should keep the most ansty kids amused for long periods. The zappy translation is by Wellington author and Dominion Post television reviewer Linda Burgess.
Pet NZ Magazine, 31 August 2008 –
Around the World with Mouk is a colourful tale about a koala (sic) and his travels.
Wairarapa Times-Age, May 2008 –
This was one of the 20 best French children’s books of 2007, translated by New Zealand author Linda Burgess. For 7 to 10-year-olds, Mouk is a little bear who sets off on an around-the-world adventure, inspiring children to travel and see other cultures. The countries are vividly illustrated, full of facts, and more information [is] on the postcards Mouk sends to friends back home. There’s an activity atlas and removable stickers for children to check the maps and follow Mouk’s journeys and trace various items. Boutavant is a graphic artist, illustrator and comic strip author, and the myriad of details of Mouk’s travels in each country will This was one of the 20 best French children’s books of 2007, translated by New Zealand author Linda Burgess. For 7 to 10-year-olds, Mouk is a little bear who sets off on an around-the-world adventure, inspiring children to travel and see other cultures. The countries are vividly illustrated, full of facts, and more information [is] on the postcards Mouk sends to friends back home. There [are] an activity atlas and removable stickers for children to check the maps and follow Mouk’s journeys and trace various items. Boutavant is a graphic artist, illustrator and comic strip author, and the myriad of details of Mouk’s travels in each country will appeal to the age group, and also introduce different languages. Mouk has appeared in previous books by the author.
Herald Canvas April 2008 –
Another of Gecko’s translations of quirky foreign books, this one is bursting with colours that verge on the psychedelic as Boutavant sends his little bear Mouk off on a world adventure. The animal world that the Frenchman creates is painstakingly detailed and brought to life with dry comments shared amoung the characters. As he journeys around the globe, Mouk sends postcards back to his friends packed with fun facts about the places he visits. There are also a couple of pages of removable stickers so kids can create and re-create their own scenes.
The Children’s Bookshop, Kilbirnie, Wellington –
Meet Mouk, a friendly little bear, who travels to 11 different places around the world, sampling fun and food as he chats to the reader, and sharing facts about the countries he visits in postcards home to his friends. Mouk is a sweet and inquisitive bear who makes many new friends on his journey, all of whom are painted in Boutavant’s cute and extremely hip style.
Full of brightly coloured pictures and witty details, Mouk has the same appeal as Richard Scarry’s books and children from age 4 to 10 will spend hours poring over it. With a spongy hardback cover , strong glossy pages, two sheets of reusable stickers and a map of the world on the back cover, Mouk, originally published in France, is like an activity atlas that is perfect to get lost in.
Tots to Teens, April 2008 –
Mouk, a mellow little bear, takes his buddies by surprise when he sets off on an around-the-world adventure learning about new places and people. Mouk loves to send post-cards back home full of interesting facts. Children will delight in discovering the world alongside Mouk by using removable stickers to further decorate the places he visits. An activity atlas that will give 7 – 10 year olds hours of fun.
Sunday Tasmanian, Edition 1, Australia, 6 April 2008 –
[This] is basically a travel atlas for children aged between seven and 10 years, in the form of an adventure trail set by a little bear called Mouk who goes off to see the world. This is a clever tool to attract the interest of curious young minds as Mouk writes postcards to his friends telling of his travels. Much of the information about each city or country includes snatches of language, cuisine, animal life festivals, customs and clothing. The pages are bright and incredibly busy, inviting young readers to spend hours poring over the details and learning while having fun. A world map on the back cover shows Mouk’s voyage and there are reusable stickers which can be moved around on the glossy pages . Innovative, colourful and clever.
New Zealand Books Aboard, www.nzbooksaboard.com, April 2008 –
Meet Mouk, a mellow little bear who takes his buddies by surprise when he sets off on an around-the-world adventure that will inspire kids to travel the world and discover different cultures. This lovable, laid-back hero travels through eleven vividly illustrated countries, meeting new friends and learning about new places. From every place he sends a postcard to his friends at home. The front end-papers
feature Mouk getting ready to leave and say good-bye to his friends, while the back-end papers show his return home and include extra
anecdotes about his travels. And to make sure our travelling bear is never lost, readers and pre-readers can follow his journey across the map on the back of the book. Translated from French by Linda Burgess this delightful book is for children seven years-of-age and older.
Trevor Agnew, Magpies-The Source, Australia, April 2008 –
Mouk is a small brown bear who travels the world on his bicycle, visiting such spots as Kangaroo Island, Lapland, Pondicherry, Lake Titticaca, New York and the Mourzouk Oasis in the Sahara Desert. Each location is shown in a colourful double-page spread with a wide range of local animals (all with big heads, huge eyes and tiny human bodies) chatting to each other as they engage in local activities, eating, greeting, working and playing. Two pages of replaceable stickers at the back of the book offer more animals and decorations to be added to the pages by young readers. On Madagascar, for example, Mouk is welcomed by Lemurs who are mending nets, picking kapok, cooking cassava and disco-dancing. A postcard from Mouk tells how a ‘lemur-eating lizard leapt on to the dance floor’ although the sticker label identifies it more correctly as a ‘lemur-eating mongoose’ [Fossa.] All the conversations are in speech balloons. ‘Safe trip, coconut,’ says a lemur as she floats a coconut out to sea. A few
pages later it floats ashore on Kangaroo Island. While the simple colourful illustrations with all their detail seem aimed at 3 to 6 year olds, the language in the postcards and conversations is more suited to 8 year olds. Shared reading with adults would seem the best use of the book. The pages are shiny and durable so that the stickers can be easily placed and removed.
Upstart Magazine, New Zealand, February/March 2008 –
The Upstart crew LOVE this book! It is an AMAZING book that will be enjoyed by ALL ages. It’s about a cute little yellow bear, Mouk, who takes his buddies by surprise when he announces he’s heading off on his big OE. From France, America, Japan, and Australia to Peru, Greece, Lapland, India and Madagascar, Mouk meets new friends and learns about new places. This book is wonderfully illustrated and there is even a cool sticker game at the back.
Time Out Bookstore Autumn 2008 Auckland NZ –
Bursting with colour and a zillion authentic details, this new book from Gecko Press follows lovable, laid-back Mouk as he travels the world meeting new friends and learning about different countries and cultures.