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Library | Material Type | Shelf Number | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
Searching... Central Library | Juvenile Book | E SHEA | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Central Library | Juvenile Book | E SHEA | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Hillview Branch | Juvenile Book | E SHEA | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
This highly interactive read-aloud for fans of The Book with No Pictures and other books that break the fourth wall is "wacky, zany, and downright fun." -- Kirkus Reviews
What could be happier than a book with a dancing cake, a candy parade, and a hug monster? A book with all those things (and more) plus YOU! Your happy, happy thoughts will make this book super happy happy! But something seems off. Could it be that frowny frog? Perhaps we could shake some sense into him, or slap a Post-it over his face. No? Well then, maybe its time for that frog to SCRAM! Hooray! He's gone! Time for a happy dance! Wait, what's wrong? Now NO ONE seems happy! Let's see if we can't do something to truly make this the happiest book ever. In his most interactive book yet, Bob Shea proves that happiness is more than just a piece of chocolate cake. (Though that comes pretty close!)
Don't miss The Scariest Book Ever , also by Bob Shea!
Author Notes
Bob Shea (www.bobshea.com) is the author of the first two books about Ballet Cat: THE TOTALLY SECRET SECRET and DANCE! DANCE! UNDERPANTS!, the Dinosaur vs. series, and several other picture books, including DON'T PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD and UNICORN THINKS HE'S PRETTY GREAT. He and his wife have their own design studio in Madison, Connecticut.
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-In a quest to be the happiest book ever, this interactive story has lined up lots of help. Dancing cake? Check. A candy parade and a flying lion? Yup. Now readers supply happy thoughts. All is well, except for the frowny frog. The book is super-duper happy, except for the frog, whose dour expression never changes. Entice a smile from him with a frog-centric riddle provided at the back of the book? (What's giant and green and hops around Tokyo? Frogzilla!) Nope, not even that groaner warrants a grin. Maybe we can just cover the frog with a Post-it note? No way, the sticky-tongued fellow makes fast work of that. The only solution is to kick the frog out of the book entirely. Now everybody's happy, right? Well, no, not exactly. Chasing Frog out of the book is just mean, and "being mean is not happy." In a forgiving mood, Frog comes back to the book and is given a balloon to make him content. Book, Frog, and readers have successfully made the happiest book ever! The volume is chock-full of colorfully wacky, doodlelike illustrations that employ a palette of yellow, orange, and bright blue. The book's "face" is surprisingly expressive, using only a few lines and shapes. VERDICT Fun for one-on-one sharing or a riotous time with a larger group, especially where other interactive titles are popular.-Sara-Jo Lupo Sites, George F. Johnson Memorial Library, Endicott, NY © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Happiness can be a cudgel: that's the gist of this funny, original, and astute meta-story. The narrator is a relentlessly cheerful face who personifies the book itself and conscripts readers into helping create the "Happiest Book Ever." The one obstacle is lumpy, unexpressive Frog, the only photographic image in the book. As the increasingly agitated face adds more and more digitally drawn whimsy to the pages ("Sunspot naptime kittens!" "A whale with good news!") Frog's imperturbability becomes an affront-an amphibian Bartleby the Scrivener. Ugly with rage, the face expunges Frog from the page, leaving a glaring white silhouette with an eerie, crime-scene vibe. None of the happy inhabitants is pleased about this turn of events (even the kittens are offended), and the disembodied face proves capable of growth: "Being mean is not happy.... Frog was just being frog." A heartfelt apology brings Frog back, and Shea (the Ballet Cat series) leaves readers feeling a little better about protecting their individuality-and perhaps less inclined to steamroll others in the future. Ages 6-8. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
The ever-popular Shea, creator of, among many others, the fierce Dinosaur vs. series, goes for smiles with a barrage of feel-good images on bright yellow backgrounds. Who can resist a dancing cake? A candy parade? Clouds with faces? Hugs?! A certain frowny frog, that's who, lumpishly crouched in the middle of each picture. Readers are enlisted to give a wild yell, shake the book, or deliver some of the can't miss frog jokes gathered at the back, but not even this can lighten up the grouchy green thing (no surprise since Shea uses the same frog photo throughout). Eventually, annoyed, the narrator thunders, SCRAM! in extra-large type, and the next page turn reveals a frog shaped hole in the art. But suddenly all the smiles in sight are upside down leading to the acknowledgment that, right, being mean is not happy. Being mean is mean. Time for an apology and an invitation to come back: there should be room in a happy dance for everyone. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Reliably best-selling Shea is back with another jaunty picture book that is sure to be met with enthusiasm.--Peters, John Copyright 2016 Booklist