Review by Booklist Review
A lion must overcome peer pressure and his own predatory instincts for the love of his daughter in this hilarious picture book in which wild animals (including a lion, a giraffe, a hippo, and a monkey) tend to their flawless suburban lawns. The action starts when the lion spots that dreaded interloper a dandelion growing in the middle of his yard. He dashes out with his hedge clippers, but his cub, Sweetie, steps in to introduce him to her new best friend: the dandelion! The lion's neighbors insist that he kills the weed, which the lion attempts to do, using his prowling skills to sneak up on it, but Sweetie is always there, playing with her flower friend. Showcasing an expressive dandelion that can mock as well as dance, Santoso's bright, playful illustrations, done digitally with hand-drawn pencil textures, are the perfect complement to Dyckman's hilariously over-the-top story. With a nail-biting climax and heartwarming resolution, this one is sure to delight a wide range of readers.--Connie Fletcher Copyright 2019 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
It's love vs. lawn care in this laugh-out-loud story by Dyckman (Wolfie the Bunny). When a lone dandelion appears in a lion father's front yard, he's determined to remove it. There's just one problem: his daughter, Sweetie, has gotten there first. "Her name is Charlotte," she says, patting the bloom. "She's my best friend." Egged on by friends and neighbors, Daddy hilariously tries to fell the weed with nunchakus, a jackhammer, a cannon, and more, but Sweetie foils his efforts at every turn. He finally has a clear shot when Sweetie heads to swim class, then realizes he can't go through with it. It seems the weed will live-that is, until Daddy drops his shears, mangling it beyond repair. When the cub returns and discovers her drooping friend, her father shows Sweetie how to blow dandelion seeds around the yard, "dandy" consequences or no. Layered with handmade pencil textures, digital illustrations by Santoso (Wishtree) play up the drama of Daddy's outsize emotions and outrageous attempts to expel the dandelion. A well-paced comic tale for all ages. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Scott Treimel, Scott Treimel New York. Illustrator's agent: Justin Rucker, Shannon Assoc. (Apr.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
A lion father is proud of (read: obsessed with) his well-manicured suburban lawn. When a dandelion brazenly sprouts in the front yard, Daddy races to get rid of the eyesorebut he was too late. His little cub, Sweetie, has already befriended the flower and named her Charlotte. A Greek chorus of judgmental fellow dad-creatures piles on the pressure: Itll take over the yard!; You KNOW what you have to do. Daddy knows, but hes powerless against his doe-eyed daughter, who appears oblivious to her fathers distress. Sweetie inadvertently thwarts each of Daddys desperateand destructive?attempts to eliminate the blight. Dyckmans well-paced text digs into the comedic contrast between Daddys stressed-out hysteria and Sweeties unhurried calm. Santosos cartoony digital illustrations with handmade pencil textures enhance both the humor and the loving father-daughter relationship. Love (and nature) wins in the end, of course, with Daddy choosing his cubs happiness over his control-freak tendencies. After Charlotte goes to seed, Daddy comforts Sweetie by blowing on the seed head and sending little Charlottes off to sprout up all around the neighborhood (a touching nod to another literary Charlotte). In the suburban jungle, a good friend is worth a bit of wildness. kitty Flynn (c) Copyright 2019. 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
In the war against weeds, there's no match for a father's love.The front endpapers paint the setting perfectly: a suburban street of neat houses with lawns and shrubs manicured to within an inch of their lives, the adult caretakers grooming them while their children play. A turn of the page, and Daddy is reacting with consternation as he spies "something scary on his perfect lawn." He's too late, though: His daughter, Sweetie, has adopted the weedsorry, floweras her best friend, "Charlotte." "Daddy hoped his friends wouldn't notice." But they do. And they pressure Daddy to take care of the weed that threatens the whole species-diverse neighborhood. But though he tries numerous times ("book time," naptime) and in numerous ways (shovel, mower), Sweetie is somehow "always there" with Charlotte. The neighbors add more pressure; Daddy's tactics grow wilder. And then Sweetie leaves for swim lessons: the perfect opportunity. But Daddy chokes. When something is suddenly "WRONG" with Charlotte, Daddy looks into his daughter's teary eyes and knows what he must do. And the rear endpapers show that the neighborhood tough-guy talk was just that, the fathers now joining their children in their play, dots of yellow on their lawns. The digital illustrations are a riot, both Daddy's obsession and Sweetie's sweetness and innocence coming through loud and clear. Hopefully this will spread around suburban neighborhood families just like Charlotte's seeds. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
