Picture Book Reviews

Posted on January 4, 2022 at 6:47 am by Gene Ambaum

The Pros & Cons of Being a Frog by Sue deGennaro. A Paula Wiseman Book, 2016. 9781481471305.

A boy who likes to dress up as animals is friends with a girl who speaks mostly in numbers. She helps him figure out which animal is best for him but then he makes her mad. Message: it’s cool to have friends who are different. DeGennaro’s playful, number-filled images feel very kind.

Arnold the Super-ish Hero by Heather Tekavec & Guillaume Perreault. Kids Can Press, 2021. 9781525303098.

Arnold’s family members all have powers and work as superheroes. Arnold is the phone guy. One day when he takes a call for help and rings the alarm, no one comes to help. So he puts on a costume and sets off for the city park, helping several people along the way. (His family even thinks he’s cool, though even they don’t know his secret hero identity by the end.) A funny, short comic about helping people in small ways, done in graphic novel format. Perreault’s pictures help the book hit just the right tone.

Someone Farted by Bruce Eric Kaplan. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2018. 9781481490634.

The Krupke family is on their way to the supermarket when one of them farts. (Sally notices it first.) No one will admit they did it. They all end up in jail. And that’s not even the end of the book. Good stuff, much funnier and more real than most of those holiday picture books you’re sick of.