Review by Booklist Review
Although his baby sister, Tootie, used to be sweet, cuddly, and toothless, she's suddenly grown fangs! The unnamed little boy narrator joins his mom and baby sister at the doctor's office, where the doctor assures them that she's no vampire Tootie's canines have just grown in before her incisors. But Tootie's brother isn't convinced, thanks to her excessive, painful biting: his feet, the dog's toy, their father's newspaper. So he decides to give away this vampire baby and is delighted when a vampire family including a boy about his own size expresses interest. But when the vampire boy scolds Tootie for biting, her brother leaps to her defense and decides that Tootie, vampire or not, is his baby sister to keep. The soft, brightly colored illustrations suggest that no harm is really going to come of the brother's impatience or Tootie's biting. Readers who already like vampire stories will get an extra jolt of fun from this picture book. For a more nuanced take on the same theme for this age, see Joann Sfar's Little Vampire books.--Goldsmith, Francisca Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Bennett's young narrator loves his younger sister, Tootie-until she grows a pair of fangs. After that, he's shouting, "Youch, Tootie! No bite!" on a regular basis. His parents refuse to believe they've sired a vampire ("She's hungry," Mom says, explaining why Tootie won't sleep at night. "And take off that garlic necklace!"), but after the boy tries to foist Tootie off on an actual vampire family, he discovers that he's more protective than he realized. Meisel gives Tootie a pair of sharp-looking fangs, playing up her brother's anxieties, while never quite answering the question, "Is she or isn't she?" Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Erin Murphy, Erin Murphy Literary Agency. Illustrator's agent: Jennifer Mattson, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-When baby Tootie gets both canine teeth simultaneously, she becomes Vampire Baby overnight. She "sinks her fangs" into everything, including her older brother, the story's narrator. On shopping day, he puts Tootie in a cape and gives her a sign that says, "Wanted good home for Vampire Baby." A vampire family happens to be in aisle 13 at the same time and offers to take the baby "homey-womey." But when the boy shouts at Tootie for chomping on his nose, her brother comes to her defense and decides to keep her after all. Simple pen-and-ink and watercolor cartoon illustrations accompany text that may interest a preschool audience with teething younger siblings. Young listeners may enjoy repeating, "Youch, Tootie! No bite!" but the appeal of this story may otherwise be limited.-Lindsay Persohn, University of South Florida, Tampa (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
A boy describes his baby sister's transformation from cute-and-cuddly tot to bloodthirsty "Vampire Baby." After sprouting two fanglike teeth, little Tootie cuts her chompers on everything within reach: toys, furniture legs, big brother's appendages. No one takes his concerns seriously (Mom: "Take off that garlic necklace!"), so, fed up, he tries to give her away to a nice vampire family. Satisfyingly, he ends up baring his own teeth to defend his little sis. Bennett's humorous conversational text plays to realism (i.e., Tootie is a normal teething baby and her brother's imagination is getting the better of him) while Meisel's clean-lined mixed-media illustrations agreeably maintain the baby-as-vampire conceit. elissa gershowitz (c) Copyright 2013. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Baby Tootie seems like a typically cute baby until her older brother notices an alarming change in her behavior when she gets two suspiciously sharp front teeth. "We should have known right then," states the brother when the doctor observes that two new teeth are "[c]anines.Most unusual," but the boy struggles to convince his parents that Tootie is far from normal, since she's always sinking her fangs into him. Her widow's peak, appetite for "blood red" food and late-night habits all appear to prove the brother's point. But his parents think the teething is "[n]othing to worry about." Fed up, he hatches a plan. During a trip to the store, the brother goes to the costume section and dresses up Tootie "in a Dracula cape" and equips her carriage with a sign advertising for a "good home for Vampire Baby." They meet a likely family in aisle 13, but the young boy (is he a real vampire, or just dressed like one?) gets too close. When Tootie chomps his nose, he scolds her: "AAARGH! YOW! OW! BAD BABY!" Readers can guess how this spurs Tootie's brother into action to defend her. Meisel's illustrations, executed in acrylic, watercolor, collage, pencil, ink and pastel, are full of details that add light, humorous touches to the tale, lending just the right touch of charm. Casting Tootie as a potential vampire gives the well-worn new-baby theme a fresh, comic twist. (Picture book. 4-6)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
