Black White: A High Contrast Book For Newborns

by Tana Hoban

Share this book with the baby in your life. It’s never too early to read together!

From the eminent photographer and acclaimed book creator Tana Hoban, this bestselling board book features bold black-and-white high-contrast images to engage babies and very young children. Tana Hoban’s board books have sold more than a million copies and are beloved by teachers, librarians, parents, and readers. A perfect gift for new parents and babies.

Before they are able to clearly see colors, babies respond to the strong contrast between black and white, which makes this the perfect first book for young, developing brains. Experiencing bold black-and-white contrast helps stimulate development in the retina and the optic nerve. This large-format, sturdy board book features high-contrast art from four bestselling Tana Hoban board books: Black on White, White on Black, Who Are They?, and What Is That? These classic and popular books have sold more than one million copies. About Black on White and White on Black, Publishers Weekly said, “Hoban’s compositions are so supple and her layouts so well balanced that she casts kind of a spell . . . magical.”

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

36 pages, Hardcover

Published May 2, 2017

Reviews

[Ty Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book transcends. Forget what you knew about literature because this brilliant work redefines the art form entirely. Balancing an expressive minimalism with avant-garde journalistic prose, Hoban strikes a new chord with the modern youth as she invites— no, urges— them into an archaeological expedition of the self.
To compliment the complexities of the script, a series of pictographic productions line the pages of this book. Readers are challenged to pair the expert storytelling with a Rorschach-esque mind puzzle leaving the common idiom, “a picture is worth a thousand words” simply wanting.
In conclusion, I find myself in awe of this work. A page turner through and through, I found myself reading the entire piece in one sitting. I believe it is safe to say the author has found her masterpiece.
Da Vinci has the Mona Lisa,
Michelangelo, the Sistine Chapel,
And Tana Hoban, Black White.

The easiest 5 stars I have ever given.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

My toddler (approx 1.5 years) is a little beyond the target audience for this book, but we found it to be really fun to "read" with him anyway. His language skills are exploding right now and this book is a great tool for asking "What's that?". His brain has to connect the word just based on the silhouette alone, which is really interesting. Bonus: he can "read" this one by himself! I have caught him flipping the pages and naming the objects all on his own. Neat!

[Joy Reinbold · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first high-contrast book I read to my 5 week old, and I was amazed! His fascination was clear from the very first time I showed it to him. I love seeing his eyes focus on the images, glancing from one page to another as I turn the pages. I've been using it during tummy time to keep him happy and interested for a little bit longer band it seems to work.
At first, I was disappointed that it didn't have any words to read to him. But I've since realized that it's better without them, as I can narrate the images any way I please, even if it's just telling him what the pictures are.

[Mr. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better for newborn , no words

[Kate M. Colby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack borrowed this book from the Ashland Public Library. Dada didn’t realize that it didn’t have words, only pictures, but that’s okay. I’m sure it’s perfect for newborns with lots of high contrast photos. Jack liked looking it at, but he’s a bit too old for it and didn’t stay super engaged. The cats, as always, were a hit, though.

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really wish I had this book from birth. That way as soon as I noticed my daughter was focusing, I would have had this in front of her. As far as a high contrast book, this was great. No words, just black and white silhouette images.

[Karina · Rating 5 out of 5]

No text at all, just the black and white pictures of animals, baby stuff, fruit, and some vehicles. Pretty good. I think it was engaging to the baby.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh the black and white makes Daphne so happy. She just stares at the contrast and smiles more often than she does normally. We’ll be reading and talking about this book every day if she keeps flashing those smiles. Images include banana, sail boat, butterfly, chair, (she’s as cute as a) button, bottle, cat, keys, fork, and leaf.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

High contrast black and white images with no words to encourage caregiver-guided conversation and exploration - great for laying literacy foundation with babies and toddlers.

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

another fabulous black and white board book by tana hoban. these are perfect for infants who see black and white much more clearly than colors!

[Jacki · Rating 3 out of 5]

High-contrast black and white images are the focus of this book. The background and foreground colors alternate each set of pages, and most of the pages adjacent to each other are in some way related.

This is, as the cover says, a great “baby’s very first book” because of the contrasting black and white colors. The purpose of this book is more exploration-based, but for an infant, this is a good introduction to a book, how it works, and the common picture-centric feature of children’s books. One thing I didn’t like is that the pictures didn’t seem to match up as much in the second half of the book for some reason.

[Lynn Plourde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Tana Hoban's early concept books so I knew I could count on her too for this black & white board book for the earliest "readers." Black & white books developmentally can be seen before color books by infants due to the high contrast as their sight develops. Heavy duty pages & thick book so it's perfect for setting up in front of an infant during tummy time. Illustrations include mostly everyday objects (bottle, banana, pacifier) which is perfect for infants.

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rowan's well beyond this one, but he still has a good time identifying the pictures. He struggles a little with stroller and the binky (he never liked binkies), but the rest he breezes through, getting especially excited about the train and the car. So it's still a good time, and nice to pair with a longer picture book.

[Alicia Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

For: readers looking for a book with more interaction; readers looking to explore vocabulary.

Possible red flags: this book will be harder for the parents and caregivers to understand what to do it as there aren't a lot of instructions--could be intimidating.

[Kelly]

Great child-like things in the book and then we get into nature for a bit and then it jumps around a bit more (not in a bad way). I do like that most of the things are baby-related things. You could also make up a really wondrous/elaborate story about the things, which I think would be really fun.

[Freddie D · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ideal for the very earliest stages of literacy.

[Victor]

Awesome book which will help perant to train their children

[Andie]

Otto's first book

[Jennifer Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that there is no text with this book. This gives Moe open talk about the page. Baby loves the cat and butterfly pages best.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black on White is a straightforward book for newborns and young babies. The high-contrast images draw their attention. It's not a book I'd recommend reading in the traditional sense, as in turning pages and telling a story. While a parent certainly can talk about the objects on the page or say how they work, I've noticed babies will focus on a single page for minutes without the extra stimulation. Because of this, it's a good book for propping up during tummy time or when you need a moment to reheat your coffee.

Recommended age: 0-6 months

Writing style: N/A. There are no words in this book.

Illustration style: Black silhouettes on white background.

Reality-based? Yes. The book contains pictures of everyday objects in a baby's life, such as a bib, leaf, and keys.

[Travis Croken · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a book with no words you certainly spend a lot of time on each page! It is fantastic to see which images your little one connects with. We use this book everyday for tummy time and reading in the rocker.