Day 226: The Monsters' Monster

We picked up this gem the last time we were at the library in yet another attempt to beat the lousy weather blues.  (Thank you, local libraries, for being such a great source of sanity throughout this never-ending winter!)  I was actually looking for a different Patrick McDonnell book, but saw this one and remembered how I had wanted to get my hands on a copy of it last fall.  Given the monster theme of this story, I had been looking to add it to our list of Halloween reading, but had since forgotten about it. We absolutely love Me… Jane, McDonnell's wonderful tale about the young Jane Goodall, and the Monsters' Monster, while a very different kind of story, was also a instant hit with my children.

Three silly monsters named Grouch, Grump, and Gloom 'n' Doom love being their rowdy, destructive, monster selves, but whenever they try to agree upon who is the most monster-y monster, they end up in a brawl.  To settle the argument once and for all, they decide to build the biggest, baddest monster ever -- a MONSTER monster!  They create their monster Frankenstein-style, only to be completely shocked at the result.  Their monster isn't scary or bad or monster-like at all; in fact, he's quite the opposite!  After letting out a resounding "DANK YOU!", his first actions are to hug his creators, open the windows, breathe in the fresh, dewy morning air, and savor the sweet, warm sunlight.  At first Grouch, Grump, and Gloom n' Doom are beside themselves -- how could this happen?? -- but eventually, they begin to appreciate their monster for who he is and try to be more like him:  grateful, kind beings who are simply happy to be alive.

As often happens, my kids and I enjoy this book for different reasons.  They find the little monsters' antics to be quite hilarious and giggle every time the big monster says, "Dank you!" For them, the story is an all-around fun, silly read that never fails to make them laugh.  I find the story really fun to read, too, but more than that, I love its simple messages.  Its important to be true to yourself, and equally important to be accepting of other people, particularly those who are different than you.  Similarly, we should all be able to slow down, appreciate what we have, and savor life's simple pleasures (such as enjoying a warm, powdered jelly donut while watching the sunrise.)

The Monsters' Monster would be a great Halloween read and is not at all scary, but it's a fun, sweet story for any time of year.

Day 146: Leonardo the Terrible Monster

My son has officially entered the "afraid of monsters" phase of childhood.  Every night before bed, we do a thorough monster check in his room, looking under the bed, in the closet, behind the curtains, and anywhere one might be hiding.  We reassure him, of course, that there is no such thing as monsters (and that even if there was, we would certainly never let them in the house), but still recognize that his fear is real and shouldn't be dismissed with this response alone.  He finds some comfort in the fact that we used to be afraid of monsters when we were little, too, but he still has his doubts.  (I don't tell him that to this day, I won't sleep with an arm hanging off of the bed.)  Fortunately, W now has a new friend to help keep the monsters away at night:  Leonardo the Terrible Monster!  We received this book along with a plush Leonardo the other day from the oh-so-generous Uncle Jeff.  A big thanks also needs to go out to friend of the blog Sharon Cerasoli, who recommended this book to us in the first place when she heard about our monster-fearing phase.   Leonardo is a TERRIBLE monster... terrible at being a monster, that is.  Try as he might, he simply cannot scare anyone.  He doesn't have 1,642 teeth like Tony, and isn't just plain weird like Hector.  Then one day, Leonardo gets an idea.  "He would find the most scaredy-cat kind in the whole world... and scare the tuna salad out of him!"  When he sneaks up on the unsuspecting Sam and the boy begins to cry, Leonardo is ecstatic.  He has finally scared the tuna salad out of someone!  Or did he?  When Sam launches into the list of things he is sad about, Leonardo makes a big decision and decides that perhaps being a wonderful friend is more important than being a terrible monster.  This story is cute, silly, and kind of heart-warming all at the same time, and we just love it!

Leonardo the Terrible Monster is classic Mo Willems, with simple, expressive illustrations and enough silliness to keep little readers giggling out loud even after the book has ended.  I love the way Willems uses empty space, font styles, and image scale on each page to help create the emotion of the story, and the subtle message about understanding in this book is wonderful, too.  It's the humor in his stories that we love most, though.  My son thinks scaring the tuna salad out of someone is one of the most hilarious things he has ever heard, and his fits of laughter that accompany each reading of this book make my heart happy.  He's been reciting the silliest parts of the story aloud to himself a lot while playing lately, too, which is always a sign that a book is hit.  My little girl adores this story, as well, and just loves to say, "Boo!... Aaahhh!!" over and over when she plays with the plush Leonardo. We still have to do our nightly monster checks, but I think we've managed to convince W that Leonardo will keep any other monsters away while he sleeps.  Whether your little reader is afraid of monsters or simply loves a silly story, this is one you will want to look for on your next trip to the library.