Review by Booklist Review
Kaplan's id fest introduces two siblings, Henry and Eve, who are going through a new, terrible phase of fighting with each other all the time. One day they both reach for the same action figure and, well, that's all she wrote. Shouting escalates to a broken lamp, which escalates to a destroyed bedroom, which escalates to a burned-down house. And they're just getting started! Eve bulldozes the whole town in a fit of rage, and then after a snack break the deleterious duo ruin the San Diego Zoo, flatten the Grand Canyon, set off Hawaii's volcanoes, and destroy Earth. Not too shabby for one day. Kaplan's characters look like angry little voodoo dolls, squiggled with loose lines, blotched with muddles of watercolor paint, and then placed upon large stretches of white background with the barest accompaniment of props. With deceptive simplicity, Kaplan accurately depicts the classic red-faced fight that, ever so slowly, becomes a fellowship of gleeful havoc. Everyone is friends by the end; in other words, let the havoc continue!--Kraus, Daniel Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"There's nothing sillier than fighting about what belongs to whom, but no kids and even fewer adults know that," observes Kaplan (Cousin Irv from Mars) sagely in this wonderful book about badly behaved siblings. Try telling that to Henry and Eve, whose scowling, luridly colored, rivalry-induced physiognomy brings to mind that guy from The Scream. Henry gets a jackhammer, Eve gets a bulldozer, and pretty soon nothing is safe-not their favorite toy store, the San Diego Zoo, the Grand Canyon, or planet Earth: "They chased each other onto a plane that went to Hawaii. Shortly thereafter, Henry and Eve caused every volcano there to explode. Which in turn caused the world to explode. So now the world was gone." All-consuming rage has seldom been so much fun; to experience Kaplan's pokerfaced narration and mordant, minimalist cartooning working in tandem is to understand what great comic timing is all about. Kids, you've been schooled. Extra points for a sibling reconciliation that manages to be farfetched, emotionally true, and the farthest thing from sappy. Ages 4-8. Agent: Erin Malone, William Morris Endeavor. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-Henry and Eve, the expressively drawn protagonists from Monsters Eat Whiny Children (S. & S., 2010), are back for a new adventure. This time, instead of whining, the children are in a "new, terrible phase of fighting with each other all the time." Their battle quickly escalates from the plausible breaking of their mother's favorite lamp to the regrettable action of leveling the Grand Canyon and continues until they end up destroying the whole world and floating alone in space. In the emptiness of space, they decide they are done fighting and drift off hand-in-hand, "Ready for their next adventure." As with Monsters, readers who do not appreciate dark humor will likely find this book strange and off-putting, but this title lacks the tongue-in-cheek charm that makes the previous book appealing and successful. The children are the villains here instead of the bumbling monsters, and their bad behavior has no counterpoint to make them relatable. At the end, they simply decide to stop fighting because they want to, continuing their selfishness. Aside from the extreme escalation of the fight, the story follows a static, predictable course without a satisfying or clever resolution. The heavy line drawings with watercolor washes are emotive and suited to the text, but since the story takes place in a world full of negative emotions, they ultimately make the children seem even more unsympathetic. Most libraries will be comfortable sticking with Henry and Eve's first adventure and passing on this one.-Anna Haase Krueger, Ramsey County Library, MN (c) Copyright 2014. 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
There's nothing sillier than fighting about what belongs to whom, but no kids and even fewer adults know that." A scuffle between siblings Eve and Henry turns into a battle of mass destruction: Henry scorches the neighborhood, Eve bulldozes the town, etc. Kaplan's signature dark humor is delivered through zippy sentences and spare ink and watercolor illustrations against plenty of white space. (c) Copyright 2014. 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
Henry and Eve, the constant complainers from Monsters Eat Whiny Children (2010), are going through a "new, terrible phase."The fight is on from the first page, and when the children simultaneously attempt to grab a favored action figure, the defeated one slings the titular moniker at her brother. Kaplan's subsequent aside asserts the philosophy underpinning his plot: "There's nothing sillier than fighting about what belongs to whom, but no kids and even fewer adults know that." It's an extensive rampage. The diminutive ink-and-watercolor caricatures contrast with sterile, white expanses interrupted by a decapitated doll here, a flattened Grand Canyon there, until all that remains is darkness. The pair's eyes are unnervingly vacant; emotional intensity is achieved through dramatic mouth or brow lines and rage-purple cheeks. Despite an escalating vengeance that leads to nihilism, actions are contained within black frames. A temporary truce allows time for a snack. The penultimate scene shows two arms reaching for each othera Michelangelo moment that mirrors the opening toy disaster but has a gentler outcome. (The endpapers, however, hint that the siblings have not completely reformed.)While most children will be able to relate to the raw frustration that Kaplan so effectively captures, it will take sophisticated readers who are familiar with dark humor to enjoy this over-the-top fable about the consequences of unfettered will. (Picture book. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
