Don't

Starred review from October 13, 2014
Trochatos debuts with a series of gently funny riddles/warnings, alerting readers why they should avoid inviting a bear to a winter sleepover (“It won’t wake up till spring”) or letting a penguin pilot a plane (“It can’t fly”). Johnson’s carefree watercolors revel in the playful setups: a child in a high chair is pummeled with fruit and a milk carton after unwisely starting a food fight with a magenta octopus, while on the next page (“Don’t let a cheetah drive your car”), a license plate that reads “FASTER” offers a clue about this animal’s attitude toward speed limits. An understated
delight. Up to age 3.

You have to be careful around animals, you know, or things can get crazy-fast. Pithy, peculiar rules, such as "Don't start a food fight with an octopus," appear on the right-hand pages, with the reasons behind the odd admonitions appearing once the page is turned: "It has six more arms that you do." The illustrations here depict a young boy and a red octopus seated across a food-laden table with pieces of fruit lifted in the air, poised to throw, followed by a scene of delightful culinary chaos in which the octopus definitely has the edge. Little ones are also warned not to let a cheetah drive the car (it likes to go too fast), invite a bear to spend a winter's night (it will refuse to leave till spring) and more. The whimsical watercolor illustrations add humor and charm. Particularly fetching are the ones of a little girl using her weight to try to yank the covers off the bear who has burrowed into her bed and the final scene of a seesaw with a hippo weighing down one end and a little boy so high in the air on the opposite side that he is visible only from the chest down. Great for one-on-one sharing or for inciting a room full of giggles at storytime, though developmentally, it reaches beyond the traditional board-book audience. (Board book. 2-6) COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

December 1, 2014

PreS-Gr 1-A collection of quirky admonishments for budding contrarians. Trochatos offers children rules for successful living by telling them what not to do. Examples include "Don't start a food fight with an octopus," "Don't let a cheetah drive your car," and "Don't invite a bear to a sleepover in winter." The results of not taking this advice are made quite clear in the splashy and super silly watercolors. The humor and situations require a bit more sophistication than is typical in most board books, but readers will still enjoy it.

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2014
Preschool This clever book of cautionary tales pairs outlandish scenarios, rendered in loose, bright watercolor illustrations, with gently instructive facts about animals after each page turn. Should you pick a food fight with an octopus? No waytheir eight arms would fling food much faster than a human's two. How about playing hide-and-seek with a chameleon? That's also inadvisable It can hide very, very well. Johnson's naive-style paintings are a neat match to the silly outcomes that could easily emerge from any kid's imagination. Little ones will likely chuckle over the comic situations while retaining some useful knowledge at the same time.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)