May's Book Pick is THAT IS NOT A GOOD IDEA! written and illustrated by Mo Willems.
This is one of my favorite picture books from last year. It's a terrific read aloud, with a format based on an old silent movie. But, rest assured, this book is not in black and white (or sepia) with scratchy panels. Instead, it's illustrated in vibrant color, with Willems's signature wit and expressive characters just waiting to draw in young readers.
A wily fox approaches a demure-looking goose and asks her to join him on a stroll. The stroll leads into the deep, dark woods, which lead to fox's house, which brings our friends into the kitchen, where a pot of soup is put on to boil. The illustrations of the fox and goose alternate with silent movie-style panels relating the dialog. Also in the mix are a bunch of baby geese who are warning everyone that this friendship is a really lousy idea. Someone ends up in the soup, but who???
The characters cleverly engage the readers by speaking directly to them, so kids will be encouraged to speak back, making for a raucous and fun story time. And I would pair this with a short silent film comedy on DVD, if possible, if I were presenting it to a group of kids.
This is a terrific example of a book with short text that contains plenty of story. A winner, according to me!
If you haven't seen THAT IS NOT A GOOD IDEA! yet, I hope you give it a try.
--Lynn
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