Phooey!

This will probably mark the fourth time today that I have attempted to sit down and write my review of this book. Attempt #1 was foiled when I looked at the art and was reminded of old comic strips of the 1920s and 30s. So of course, I had to look at my collection of them. Attempt #2 fell victim to a sudden uncontrollable desire to pluck Little Nemo 1905-1914 from its shelf for a good long read. Attempt #3 saw me getting really close to success. Unfortunately, I started trolling the comic websites in the hopes of defining what it is about Rosenthal's style I like so much. Finally, we arrive at Attempt #4 and, I sincerely hope, the moment when I am able to satisfactorily direct your attention to author/artist Marc Rosenthal's latest, greatest ode to comic strips, comic sensibilities, old timey picture books, and great gags. That is, as long as I don't look too closely at that edition of The Comics: Since 1945 sitting on my shelf. Our hero is one bored kid. There is absolutely nothing going on around him so with an outraged, "PHOOEY!" he kicks an empty can of cat food. A can that, in turn, hits a cat upside the head, causing it to flump to the ground and be chased by a dog. As dog and cat run into a nearby zoo the boy meets up with a friend and complains loudly about the lack of excitement going on. "Nothing ever happens around here! No Way! No How!" Of course, his back is to most of the crazy stuff that's going on. An elephant has now escaped, barrels and pies are flying, navel oranges ("extra bouncy") escape the confines of an outdoor stall, and soon an entire street of people is rendered chaotic. It's only when the elephant riding cat is thrown for a loop into the air and onto the boy's lap that he perks up, sits amazed, and says, "This place is great!" Boredom, it seems, is only there if you expect to find it. For a book that appears to be so simple, Rosenthal certainly packs in the details. You won't notice these on a first reading, probably. If you're reading the book to a kid then the two of you will have more fun making the sound effects and various noises. It's only when you reach the last page that the kid might turn to you and asks, "Why's the pirate wearing glasses now?" And sure as shooting, there's that pirate you saw earlier wearing a pair of Harry Potter-ish specs. Well, where did he get them? So you do a second read and things start to get all the weirder. Is that a woman removing a canoe from the trunk of her car in the middle of a city? And when you go all the way back, isn't the boy's inadvertent kicking of a can directly responsible for all the nuttiness that happens as a result? The really impressive detail, however, is an image hidden under the back bookflap. On the endpapers you can see our hero combating his boredom in various ways. These appear to be identical to the positions he was in on the FRONT endpapers... and then you lift the flap. There, walking away with a secret smile is the boy wi

My 3 year old loves this book. He likes spelling out the words, and repeating them. Very simple and enjoyable. A great way to teach elementary school students about the literary convention of onomatopoeia. My only criticism is that there isn't truly an ongoing narrative--it reads more like a comic book than a picture book (there is a difference). Be that as it may, my son enjoyed it. Thumbs up.

A little boy is very bored and complains that nothing ever happens around his town. He kicks a can that starts an unlikely chain of events around him. The little boy is so busy complaining to his friend he doesn't see all the cool stuff going on around him!