Milton & Odie and the Bigger-than-Bigmouth Bass

September 1, 2019
Polar-opposite otters find camaraderie in this read-aloud. Grumpy Milton and exuberant Odie are two adorable anthropomorphic otters on parallel ice-fishing pursuits. Dressed in muted greens and grays, Milton finds negativity in the old boot he fishes out of the frozen lake, criticizes his bait, and is less than enthused about crossing paths with the cheery Odie when Milton's line tugs Odie's fishing pole out of the water. With an exuberant, red-and-yellow plaid coat and bright blue hat and mittens, Odie sees possibilities and positives as readily as Milton can find the downside in anything. From their meeting, they learn about teamwork and experience a sweet role reversal after some success. While the pair of otters represents a type of emotional binary, the gently repetitive events in the story could well start conversations about ranges of emotions. Warmth is established through images of happy fish swimming beneath Odie (those beneath Milton match his glum mien), Odie's genuine smile, and emphasized onomatopoeia. Large, unfussy black type creatively shifts to fill negative space or snowy white landscapes. Combine this with Grumpy Pants (2016) by Claire Messer or Bernice Gets Carried Away (2015) by Hannah E. Harrison for a trio of reads that can offer some giggles while exploring emotions and friendship. Sunnily earnest. (Picture book. 4-7)

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October 11, 2019

PreS-Gr 2-This charmingly illustrated adventure introduces Milton, a pessimistic otter, who crosses paths with Odie, an upbeat one, on a frozen lake. For the most part, Milton and his pessimism are confined to the left-hand page while Odie, the eternal optimist, is on the right. The parallel narrative tells the story of both otters struggling to catch a fish. Milton hates every moment, and Odie sees each mistake and defeat as a sparkling opportunity. The pencil and crayon illustrations are warm and welcoming, despite the cold setting. Milton and Odie are appropriately fuzzy and decked out in warm hats and cozy flannels. The lake is a strange ecosystem, with Milton's side being dark, stormy, and filled with nasty-looking barracuda, and Odie's side is sunny, blue, and filled with happy fish chewing bubble gum. Of course, these illustrations display the otters' contrasting viewpoints on their current situation, and eventually Odie's sunny demeanor triumphs over Milton's negative thoughts after the two team up to catch a fish. Their victory leaves them both identically merry, while unintentionally erasing the only aspect of Milton's personality we've been shown. Seeing the power of positive thinking is a valuable lesson, but the unbalanced narrative suggests that a pessimistic outlook should be entirely squashed out, which is, in itself, a paradoxically pessimistic view of world outlooks. VERDICT Recommended for glass half-full types who don't wish to consider the value of cynicism and a balanced worldview.-Chance Lee Joyner, Wilton Public and Gregg Free Library, NH

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