Perfect Picture Book Friday :-)

I wanted to say goodbye to Jan Berenstain. Thank you for all the wonderful stories about your bears!

Monsters Eat Whiny Children

Written and illustrated by Bruce Eric Kaplan

Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers (August 31, 2010)    

Suitable For:     

Ages 4 and up

 

 

Theme/Topic: 

Teaching children not to whine               

Opening:

Once there were two perfectly delightful children

who were going through a terrible phase, which

is to say they whined all day and night

"I want to go outside," whined Henry.

"Outside! Outside!" whined Eve.

"Where's my phone? whined Henry.

"No grilled cheese! whined Eve.

And so on.

Synopsis 

From School Library Journal 

For those who like their picture books with a little edge and offbeat humor, this is a surefire hit. Henry and Eve are "going through a TERRIBLE phase"; they whine constantly and are eventually stolen by a monster and taken to his lair. To be fair, their kindly father did warn them. Luckily, the monster and his wife whine and argue even more than the children, and cannot agree on what to make: whiny-child salad, burgers, or vindaloo? On the advice of a deliciously cantankerous aunt, the monsters finally agree on simple whiny-child cucumber sandwiches on fluffy white bread. In the meantime, however, the clever children escape, having learned an important lesson about whining–mostly. The recipe for cucumber sandwiches, minus the whiny children, is included. Kaplan's minimalist cartoon illustrations bring to mind Quentin Blake's work and complement the humorous, quirky text with its askew frames, thick black lines, and color accents. The book makes a great read-aloud. Opportunities for whiny monster voices abound, and readers are guaranteed a laugh when the monster's wife insists she cannot eat whiny-child cake because her bottom is too big.

 

Why I loved it:

The neon green cover is eye-catching, the silliest title and the book is dedicated to the two whiny characters in the book. It is laugh out loud fun while teaching kids just how ridiculous their whining sounds. Can anyone say refreshing? 

Resource:

I tried, but could not find any resources on this book. SO. How about teaching what Gila monsters and Sea monsters really eat? That could be fun to learn and tie in nicely with the story.

For more picture books click over to visit the awesome, wonderfully fantastic author pal, Susanna Leonard Hill.

 

Happy birthday Dr. Seuss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 

Have a lovely weekend everyone! xoxo