Translated by J. Alison James. Illustrated by Maja Dusíková. 32 p., North-South, 2004. When you're a monster, you might be afraid of the children that could be hiding under the bed. Such is the case for green, sharp-toothed, claw-footed Mona, who worries about going to sleep even though her mother reassures her that there's no such thing as children. But in fact, two children do show up in her attic after she's gone to bed. At first, Mona is terrifed of the children, and of course, they're terrifed of her. One child, Lenny, shoots Mona with a water pistol, and he and Maria chase Mona. But Maria realizes that Mona is crying, and the children apologize to her. And they make friends. They find that they envy each other's lives - Mona's mother doesn't like her to be clean or to pick up her room. They teach each other their favorite games. And they discover that the Mona's mother can't see the children, and the children's mother can't see Mona. When Mona finally goes back to bed, she dreams of friendly children who want to play. This isn't the first story of a monster who is afraid of children at bedtime (for example, see The Something by Natalie Babbitt, 1970, Clyde Monster by Robert L. Crowe, 1976, and the hilarious No Such Thing by Jackie Koller French, 1997) but this one is lovely and made me laugh. Illustrated with whimsical watercolor paintings, this story offers children humor and a new perspective to help dispel their fears. Ages 3-6
Showing posts with label monsters. Show all posts
Showing posts with label monsters. Show all posts
Sally and the Some-Thing by George O'Connor
32 p., Roaring Brook, 2006. Sometimes, making new friends involves looking past both appearances and an initial impression that you don't have anything in common. When Sally is bored, she rides her bike to the pond and goes fishing. She doesn't catch any fish, but she meets a green, slimy-looking Some-Thing. Many kids would be scared, but Sally isn't - she's happy that the Some-Thing isn't borning, and invites him to play. The Some-Thing isn't good at the kinds of things Sally likes to do, and it turns out that Sally finds the Some-Thing's favorite things either boring or too difficult. But Sally is a natural problem-solver, and she doesn't give up. Instead, she proposes that they make up new games to play together. This works out wonderfully for them - they play all day, until the Some-Thing is exhausted, and Sally takes him home to the pond. Colorfully and expressively illustrated, this story supports children in using their problem-solving skills toward making new friends. Ages 4-7