Body Buddies Say..."Wash Your Hands!"
PreSchool-K-If children are old enough to wash their own hands, they're old enough to understand what germs are, without needing to see purple rhinoceros viruses (rhinoviruses) and brightly colored Leukocyte Buddies in military uniforms. Vitamin C is sprayed from slingshots, "...Cellicopters swoop in and gobble up the Rhinos," and Captain Brain coordinates the action over a central nervous system videophone. Perhaps the tone of the book can be summed up by describing the overlord: Lymph Commanode, a yellow blob in a navy blue uniform, complete with medals. Delivering health information to very young children can be accomplished without insulting them as evidenced in Melvin Berger's Germs Make Me Sick (HarperCollins, 1995). The illustrations in Body Buddies are unappealing, consisting mostly of colorful amorphous shapes with ponytails.Christine A. Moesch, Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, NYCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.