Meet the Dullards

December 22, 2014
Are the Dullards worthy successors to Allard and Marshall’s Stupids? Not quite. The Stupids are all exuberantly stupid, whereas only the Dullard parents are dull (and rather resolutely so); their children are another matter. As the story opens, siblings Blanda, Borely and Little Dud have been inspired by books to develop fascinating talents (juggler, animal
whisperer, and funambulist, respectively), which eventually culminates in their joining the circus. In the meantime, it’s a battle of wills as Mr. and Mrs. Dullard try to keep the horrors of an interesting life at bay, such as floral wallpaper or a neighbor’s applesauce cake (“Smooth or chunky applesauce?” Mr. Dullard inquires. “Chunks are so unpredictable. So nerve-racking”). Pennypacker (the Clementine series) and Salmieri (Secret Pizza Party) are clearly mining a satiric vein—the Dullards are essentially helicopter parents on overdrive—but even when the visual jokes are working (as when the family is mesmerized by watching beige-grey paint dry) the book doesn’t quite achieve the high silliness of its premise. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. Illustrator’s agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House.

December 15, 2014
All children wonder, at times, if parents make decisions solely to suppress fun; in this story, there is no doubt. Blanda, Borely and Little Dud-their gray clothing and straight brown hair resembling their parents'-lead an intentionally diversion-free existence. Books are confiscated and replaced with blank paper, television may be watched only when unplugged, and school attendance is denied. When a snail crosses the road, the family moves, because "[i]t's like a circus around here." Observant viewers will intuit from the siblings' contraband reading material and paint-store antics that becoming a juggler, tightrope walker and lion tamer are actually in line with their desires. They will chuckle at the dull adults' absurdity and revel in the children's rebellion. Salmieri's watercolor, gouache and colored-pencil scenes provide just enough texture and color (seen in the outside world) to maintain interest. Small, changing expressions among these oval-eyed, spindly-legged caricatures and amusing details on the cover and title page reward close looking. The difference, however, between this crew and their cousins, the Stupids and Dumb Bunnies, is that those families are ignorant together-blissfully, lovingly. Here, although there is humor in the home, there is no joy; the children struggle to entertain themselves under extreme demands for conformity. When the siblings sneak out to join the circus, readers may hope that they never return. (Picture book. 4-8)

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Starred review from February 1, 2015

K-Gr 2-In this tongue-in-cheek tale, Mr. and Mrs. Dullard take great pride in being humdrum. Family activities include watching paint dry and savoring vanilla ice cream ("Hold the cones. And extract the vanilla"). The Dullards are horrified at exclamation marks, flowered wallpaper, and sociable neighbors bearing gifts of applesauce cake. They try their best to shelter their children from such colorful influences. Away from their parents' watchful gaze, however, Salmieri's colored-pencil illustrations humorously show Blanda, Borely, and Little Dud breaking out of their mild molds by juggling paintbrushes, climbing on clotheslines, and befriending puppies. There are also plenty of sight gags to chuckle at, from the children gathered around an unplugged, blank television screen to piles of plain cardboard boxes full of "gray shirts." VERDICT This title follows in the quirky tradition of Harry Allard's "The Stupids" books (Houghton), with clever wordplay and subversive fun that will appeal to children everywhere.-Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2014
Grades K-2 Parents used to hearing This is so boring! might want to show this worst-case scenario to their kids. Mr. and Mrs. Dullard are trying to raise their three childrenBlanda, Borely, and Little Dudin their own image: dull as rocks. Horrified upon finding the kids reading books (instead of nice blank paper ), the family uproots from its lawless neighborhood. (They're still recovering from when the leaves changed color.) Their new house, though, has problems: a neighbor who uses exclamation points in front of the kids, and a roombrace yourselfpainted bright yellow. So the family hurries off to buy some beige-gray paint and, you guessed it, watch it dry. The real story, however, plays in the edges: the three kids taking every opportunity to scurry away from their stultifying parents and cavort, climb, and cackle. Pennypacker packs the pages full of winning jokes ( Five vanilla cones, please. Hold the cones. And extract the vanilla ), while Salmieri's colored-pencil art creates a perfectly monotonous world of straight angles and nondescript coloring. Rarely has boring been this boisterous. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Both Pennypacker (the Clementine books) and Salmieri (Dragons Love Tacos, 2012) are best-sellers. Dull as it is, this ought to sell well, too.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)