The Bad Mood and the Stick

August 28, 2017
Curly wears overalls and two poofy pigtails. Her expression is stormy. A multicolored bad mood hovers above her like a cloud. Then she pokes her brother with a stick and cheers right up. Curly’s mother has the bad mood now; then it moves to a man named Lou, and from there “all over the world. You yourself had it several times.” All kinds of feelings prove contagious in Snicket’s story; the lowly stick spreads cheer in Curly’s town the way the bad mood spreads gloom. The story traces how chance knits together the lives of Curly, her family, Lou, Lou’s dry cleaner, and the ice cream man. Snicket doesn’t paper over the way the discomfort of others can turn a bad mood around; at the same time, he celebrates generosity, community, and the workings of fate (“You never know what is going to happen”). Forsythe’s sherbet-hued images combine big cartoon gestures with rich color. Snicket’s quirky narrative voice and observations of events both great and lowly make this a fine readaloud—and a sure cure for a bad mood. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Charlotte Sheedy, Charlotte Sheedy Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Judith Hansen, Hansen Literary.

September 1, 2017
A bad mood dogs different people in turn, while the fate of a stick dropped from a tree seems to move the bad mood along. Curly, a little redheaded, white girl out for a walk with her mother and brother, is carrying around a bad mood (depicted as a multicolored cloud with a frowny face) because although they passed an ice cream shop two hours earlier, they didn't get any ice cream. She finds a stick that had been dropped by a tree the night before and uses it to poke her little brother. She feels better, but now her scolding mother is carrying the bad mood. And so the bad mood moves on from her mother to a carpenter to a cat, to other animals and people, and the stick experiences a similar fate until it gains a new enhancement and is given a place of prominence, while the bad mood sails on. Snicket's story takes unexpected turns and reveals delightful surprises, told with smart, silly language and cheeky asides; every page blooms with beautiful artwork done in bright, colorful gouache washes and featuring charming, 1960s-style animal and human characters. There's even an interracial love story interwoven along the way. Snicket's fans will love this book, but readers need never have read a single word by the author to appreciate the wonderfully presented universality of the bad mood and how quickly a little thing can chase it away--or beckon it upon us. (Picture book. 5-8)

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October 1, 2017

PreS-Gr 2-Cause and effect get the Snicket treatment in this amusing tale. Because of the bad mood-visually represented as a frowning, multicolored cloud-Curly pokes her brother with the stick. Instead of following the familiar arc of her misbehavior, regret, and reconciliation, the story veers into unexpected territory: the poking completely cheers up Curly and the bad mood transfers to Curly's mother. (Parents will groan in utter recognition.) The bad mood and the stick then go on to affect other characters across the town, resulting in a wedding attended by "everyone in this book." All of this unfolds in the understated voice that Snicket does so well, particularly with the slyly funny repeated phrase "You never know what is going to happen." Forsythe's thickly outlined gouache, ink, and pencil illustrations add retro flair to the story. The various white- and brown-skinned humans resemble Peanuts characters with their heavy outlines, circular heads, and cartoonishly simple yet expressive faces. Pair with Fortunately by Remy Charlip and discuss predictions, or with Judith Viorst's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for more on bad moods and their causes. VERDICT A cheerfully wacky read-aloud sure to brighten listeners' moods.- Sarah Stone, San Francisco Public Library

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2017
Preschool-G If Curly's angry eyebrows and severe frown don't clue readers into her foul mood, then the grumpy, rainbow-splotched cloud hovering above her will. Playful cynic Snicket traces the cloud's movement through a town, as it's passed like contagion from one person to the next. Having been denied ice cream, brooding Curly feels much better after poking her little brother with a stick. But now her mother's annoyed, harrumphing down the sidewalk with the moody cloud tucked beneath her arm. Cue the raccoon that takes up Curly's discarded stick and startles handyman Lou straight into a mud puddle. Mom can't help but giggle, and so the cloud drifts to its new, sodden companion. The pattern continues until a series of cheerful events (courtesy of the stick) usurps the story, resulting in a (mostly) happy ending. Rather than employ sullen hues, as one might expect, Forsythe's artwork glows with sunset tones of marigold, magenta, amethyst, and yellow. His stylized, two-dimensional illustrations stand in sprightly opposition to the hovering mad-mood cloud, adding visual humor to Snicket's droll tale. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Snicket comes with a built-in fan base, so stave off grumpy patrons by ordering multiple copies of this one.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)