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Summary
Summary
Mo Willems delivers a smorgasbord of hunger, hubris, regret, and redemption as a Busy Creature hilariously chomps and chews its way from A to P and then to Z.
Author Notes
Mo Willems was born on February 11, 1968. After graduating from New York University's Tisch School for the Arts, he spent a year traveling around the world drawing a cartoon every day, which were published in the book You Can Never Find a Rickshaw When it Monsoons. For nine seasons, he worked as a writer and animator for PBS' Sesame Street, where he received 6 Emmy Awards for his writing. During this time, he also served as a weekly commentator for BBC Radio and created two animated series, Nickelodeon's The Off-Beats and Cartoon Network's Sheep in the Big City.
While working as head writer for Cartoon Network's Codename: Kids Next Door, he began writing and drawing books for children. He received three Caldecott Honor Awards for Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! in 2004; Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale in 2005; and Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity in 2008. He also created the Elephant and Piggie series for Easy Readers, which were awarded the Theodor Seuss Geisel Medal in 2008 and 2009.
His drawings, wire sculptures, and ceramics have been exhibited in numerous galleries and museums across the nation. Occasionally he serves as the Radio Cartoonist for NPR's All Things Considered. He voices and produces animated cartoons based on his books with Weston Woods studios. The animated Knuffle Bunny was awarded Best Film during the New York International Children's Film Festival in 2008 and received the Andrew Carnegie Medal in 2007. His title Happy Pig Day made Publisher's Weekly Best Seller List for 2011. In 2012 his title Goldilocks and The Three Dinosaurs made The New York Times Best Seller List. In 2013 his titles: That is Not a Good Idea!, Let's Go for a Drive! and I'm a Frog! made the New York Times Best Seller List. In 2014 The Pigeons Need a Bath! and Waiting Is Not Easy! made the New York Times Best Seller List.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
G is for gluttony (ok, "gravy," technically) in Willems's madcap abecedary, built around a youngster who devours everything in sight, then suffers the consequences. Purple, wide-eyed, and resembling a cross between a monkey, dog, and Muppet, the young creature explodes out of bed and into an alphabetical meal of "Apples! Berries! Cereal!" It isn't pretty: Granny Smiths and strawberries go flying, and the creature dives face-first into its cereal bowl. The text is limited to whatever the creature is eating at the moment (and the accompanying alphabet letter), and Willems captures each moment in frenetically cartooned vignettes and larger scenes. Soon, food isn't enough: "Jacket! Kilt! Lunch Box!" (Hilariously, the creature dumps the food out of the lunch box before devouring it.) Queasiness follows (just in time for Q), and parental consolation is required: V is for "vomit," a much tidier affair than all of the eating that precedes it. There are a lot of laughs in this feeding frenzy, but just as much tenderness in the final scenes, which poignantly reflect the ABCs of TLC. Ages 3-5. Agent: Marcia Wernick, Wernick & Pratt. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Willemss offbeat take on an ABC book follows a wide-eyed little-kid purple monster, dressed in striped PJs, enthusiastically eating its way through the dayand the furniture. The culinary adventure begins at the breakfast table: a is for Apples! (a dozen of them, all being juggled toward the creatures mouth), b is for Berries! (even more), and c is for Cereal! (the monsters whole face is in the bowl). Breakfast continues with Doughnuts! and Eggs! and then a well-timed narrative pause: whats next? Turn the page: Furniture! From here, the creatures consumption includes both food (Ice Cream!) and not-food (Jacket!), all shown in cartoony, super-high-energy illustrations, most of them neatly contained in square or rectangular panels that add some comforting visual order to the proceedings. The voracious creature eats its way through the letter n before: Ooooohhh / POTTY! A grownup appears (Queasy?) and offers Rice. Saltines. Tea. Feeling better after v (for Vomit), the creature is led to bed (and refreshingly, here z stands for Zonked, not your typical zzzzzs). This being a Mo Willems book, Knuffle Bunny, the Duckling, Gerald and Piggie, and the Pigeon make cameo appearances. elissa Gershowitz (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* Willems is back with another gut buster, this time in the form of a gluttonous abecedary. A purple creature sort of a dog-mouse hybrid plunders the kitchen, gobbling a heap of apples and berries with manic zeal, before plunging his face into a bowl of cereal. Next, a string of doughnuts arcs from a bakery box into his gaping maw, and a dozen eggs soon follow suit. Each new food appears in its own frame, with its representative letter colorfully attached to the upper corner, and the word itself printed below the scene. The creature proceeds through the house, munching on increasingly ridiculous things (a jacket, a lunch box) until he goes a bit green and Potty! and Queasy enter the picture. Dad comes to the rescue with a bland buffet (rice, saltines, tea), but there's no soothing this tummy, so the little guy gets a tender pat as . . . Vomit. The cartoonish illustrations and gross-out humor are tempered by the presence of a loving parent waiting in the wings. Creative and hilarious, Willems' alphabet book has all the right ingredients to become a hit. Be prepared to binge read this one. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: It's Willems! Make sure your shelves are stocked.--Smith, Julia Copyright 2018 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 1-"Do not try this at home!" cautions Willems as he proceeds to tell the story of a hungry little purple creature that eagerly eats its way through the alphabet, though not without consequence. Snuggling in bed with a one-eyed Knuffle bunny, the protagonist awakens to a new day of eating and "AAAA-ZING!" it's off to the kitchen where the hungry tyke gobbles up apples, berries, cereal, doughnuts, and eggs (straight from the crate). Momentarily stumped on what to eat next, it proceeds to chow down on the furniture. Further courses feature other food and non-food items from ice cream to lunch boxes with equal enthusiasm; but the plot changes when the tenacious eater groans and then it's a mad dash to the bathroom (potty) with dad coming to the rescue. ("Queasy? Rice. Saltines. Tea.") The accompanying illustrations speak volumes as readers watch the poor, now slightly green, purple creature accept comfort from its concerned father who finally deposits the exhausted little one back into bed to snuggle once again with bunny; after all, tomorrow is another day. Willems's distinct clever, outrageous humor gives children a hilarious picture book alphabet that tells a story with minimal text. Challenge students to plan the character's menu for the rest of the week or pair with Nick Bruel's Bad Kitty for another culinary alphabet adventure. VERDICT A first purchase for all libraries serving children.-Barbara Auerbach, formerly at New York City Public Schools © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
With Willems' name on it, this abecedary is bound to be zanyand it is. This over-the-top "smorgasbord" is a tale of a raucous creature that chomps and chews everything in sight, from A to Z. But waitthis is not one of Willems' simple Elephant and Piggie early readers, nor is it the story of a little girl and her beloved stuffed bunny. This creature is not avian, but it's a kissing cousin to Willems' pigeon. The blocky purple character with googly orange eyes wears a blue-and-red-striped shirt and pants (or perhaps pajamas), and it has a black, bulbous nose and protruding white teeth. The beginning letters of its monumental meal stand for common edible items: "Apple! Berries! Cereal!" Then it goes bananas, eating "Furniture!Kilt! Lunch Box! [and] Napkins!" that induce a run to the "POTTY!" No one will be surprised to learn that the creature is "Queasy" and needs to "Vomit." An adult figure arrives on the scene with hugs and kisses ("XO-XO-XO!"), and the creature emits a huge "YAWN" and is finally "Zonked." Children will follow right along with the creature's mishaps, and they will enjoy predicting (incorrectly) what it might eat and (correctly) what happens as its face starts to turn green. They'll also appreciate the kindliness of the adult figure who shows no anger but instead tends lovingly to its charge.For readers on the Pigeon end of the spectrum, this will hit the spot, but those who love Willems' quieter protagonists may find it an abrupt change of pace. (Picture book. 4-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
