Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Readers may recognize McDonnell's (Thank You and Good Night) work here by the Krazy Kat schnozz on the rambunctious toddler who stars in this cozy mother-to-child love letter. Rinker (Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site) gives each sentence its own grin of a punch line. "I never imagined before you came along," the mother muses quietly in her armchair, "that our house could get this messy and loud!" On cue, a shriek from her child propels her toward the ceiling. "Or that you'd be so silly, and giggly, and splashy, and crashy!" (in paired scenes, the mother shrinks from a shower of bathwater, and the girl overturns a vase with the imperious air of a dragon queen). "Aren't you tired, too?" the exhausted mother asks the girl, but on the facing page, two saucer eyes peer out of the bedroom blackness. A father never appears, making the book well-suited for both single and paired mothers, and the message Rinker delivers is that children aren't loved because they're good-it's this toddler's very spiritedness that makes her so bewitching. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Amy Rennert, Amy Rennert Agency. Illustrator's agent: Henry Dunow, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Directed to a child from a wistful parent's point of view, this picture book acknowledges and celebrates the change of routine and pace that a young child brings into a home. "I never imagined, before you came along.that our house could get this messy and LOUD!" With each page turn, the illustrations, done in pen, brush, and ink, bring humor to the nonstop day as Mom and the cat take everything more or less in stride while the small daughter bounds exuberantly through all of it. Vases break, little blocks injure Mom's feet, and everything gets dirty, sticky, or smelly. After listing these more challenging daily aspects of parenting, the story slowly turns, expressing glimpses of amazement and wonder, until "Since there was you, I'm always surprised at how much fun you are, and how GINORMOUSLY I love you." Finally, the exhausted mother manages to get this little ball of energy (mostly) to sleep in her arms, recognizing that "dreams really do come true." The fun and expressively active line drawings nicely balance the text, keeping the story from becoming too sentimental or exhausting. VERDICT While children may enjoy the humor and the cozy but fast-paced story, this book ultimately serves as a helpful pep talk for the tired grown-ups in their lives.-Julie Roach, Cambridge Public Library, MA © Copyright 2015. 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 Kirkus Book Review
A mother's rhymes enumerate the many, varied (sometimes bewildering, sometimes beatific) ways her toddler tot has altered her life. Looking back she wonders at how she never knew, "that our house could get this messy and LOUD! / Or that you'd be so silly, and giggly, and splashy, and CRASHY!" Bold, oversized lettering emphasizes already extremely effective onomatopoeic language that runs throughout, demonstrating how sounds resonate and dominate in a toddler's home. McDonnell's reliably astute ink, brush, and pen illustrations punctuate these rhymes with spirited freeze frames of mother's mishaps (tub water in the eye, a block underfoot) and gleeful moments of surprise (unexpected fairy wings, glittery artwork, park frolics). Mommy's red-rosebud mouth gapes, her eyes widen to oversized ovals, and miraculously her buttercup-blonde flip hairdo never changes shape! While perhaps a nod to the timelessness of a mother's experience with her first baby, the mid-20th-century motif (down to mother's black cigarette pants and white oxford shirt) and simple, straightforward rhymes leave this picture book feeling dated. One senses that just beyond the washes of gentle blues, pinks, and yellows that fill the background of each spread, just beyond the gauzy ether that spotlights these two familiar cartoonish caricatures, modern mothering scenes tell the same story, sharply, with poignancyand through a whole spectrum of colors and faces. It's sweet, but it lacks the freshness that would make it stand out. (Picture book. 2-4) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
