A short, sweet story about a baby kangaroo who is reticent to jump out of his mother's pouch and explore the big, beautiful world outside. That is, until a creature who looks just like her comes along. Bright, pleasing illustrations. However, this is not a book for learning about the natural habitats of animals, i.e., kangaroos don't live near elephants, giraffes, or camels (pictured in a scene). Nevertheless, four stars for a quick, engaging tale.

This is a cute book about separation anxiety using animals. Little kangaroo is getting too big to live in Mama's pouch but she is afraid to leave it. She only feels safe when she is in mama's pouch. Mama tries to get her interested in the world around her with no luck. When another young kangaroo shows up, Little kangaroo finally leaves the pouch and hops off with her new friend. My main issue with this book is that kangaroos live in Australia, but the animals they show in the book live in Africa. This could be confusing to children who have learned about where some of these animals live. The illustrations are cute and done in a way that is non-threatening. They look like stuffed animals. They are colourful and young children will like them. A nice book for a family library.

I would not recommend this book. While the premise (fear of new things) may be universal, it is not written in a child-like or engaging way. Perhaps if the author had written it from the little joey's perspective, it would be easier for the audience to connect. I also find it difficult to get past the physical inaccuracies. I know this is a work of fiction, but...We find the main character (a kangaroo) smack in the middle of Africa: interacting with elephants, monkeys, and giraffe! Unless this story is set in a zoo, or our main character has learned to fly, that's impossible. And while the artwork is child-like, it lacks imagination and adds nothing to the story.