[BOOK REVIEW] Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf by Judy Sierra

Title:  Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf

Author:  Judy Sierra

Artist:  J. Otto Seibold

Genre:  Manners / Fairy Tale / Animals / Humor

Year Published: 2007

Year Read:  2016

Publisher:  Alfred A. Knopf

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+  (Some Bizarre Imagery)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

    

   

Now, I will be honest here.  I was actually introduced to J. Otto Seibold’s work through a long forgotten animated TV special “Olive, the Other Reindeer” and even though at the time, I didn’t care for “Olive, the Other Reindeer” because of the art style, the special did get me interested in reading some of J. Otto Seibold’s other works and I stumbled upon “Mind Your Manners B.B. Wolf” which was also written by Judy Sierra and I have to admit that I fell in love with this book!

B.B. Wolf (formerly known as the “Big Bad Wolf”) ends up being invited to the local library’s annual storybook tea and he ends up becoming nervous because he does not know how to act properly for this event.  So, his best friend Crocodile ends up teaching him the proper etiquette in how to behave in a tea party ceremony by teaching B.B. Wolf this little song ditty:

“Sip your tea and never slurp,

Say “Excuse Me” if you burp.

Smile and have a lot of fun,

But don’t go biting anyone!”

Once B.B. Wolf goes off to the local library to attend this party, he meets up with Little Red Riding Hood, the Three Little Pigs and the Gingerbread Man and they all seem nervous to see B.B. Wolf come to the party.

Can B.B. Wolf convince everyone that he can be polite?

Read this book to find out!

Wow!  I was actually quite impressed with this book!  I have read many books written by Judy Sierra and I have enjoyed many of her books, but I had never read any of her books that explore the importance of good manners in a cute and simplistic way!    Judy Sierra had done a great job at writing a book about manners without being too heavy handed about what you should learn about having good manners and I loved the way that B.B. Wolf was written as a well-meaning character who only wanted to impress the other fairy tale characters and prove that he is not a bad person anymore.  I really loved the little song ditty that B.B. Wolf sings throughout the story that goes like:

“Sip your tea and never slurp,

Say “Excuse Me” if you burp.

Smile and have a lot of fun,

But don’t go biting anyone!”

It is a cute little song that is simple and fun for many children to sing to and learn about how to behave during a party or event. I also loved the way that Judy Sierra created the world of the fairy tale inhabitants as all the fairy tale characters live in one town and you can see them interact with each other.  It was also interesting seeing that this story takes place in a more real world setting, even though there are fairy tale characters inhabiting this world as it made the story more creative and fun to read!  J. Otto Seibold’s artwork really brought out the surreal nature of the fairy tale world that B.B. Wolf lives in and they also bring out the creative nature of the fairy tale characters interacting with each other while giving their world a part realistic, part fantasy element in tone.

Parents should know that J. Otto Seibold’s artwork might be a bit too strange for some children to handle and they might either be frightened or confused by the chaotic artwork in this book.  Parents might want to read this book first before they show it to their children to see if their child would like this type of artwork.

Overall, “Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf” is a truly fantastic book that helps teach children the importance of good manners and maybe make up their own little song ditty to help them remember about how to behave during parties and events!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the artwork might either frighten or confuse some children.

 

[BOOK REVIEW] The Secret Science Project that Almost Ate the School by Judy Sierra

Title:  The Secret Science Project that Almost Ate the School

Author:  Judy Sierra

Artist:  Stephen Gammell

Genre:  Horror / Science Fiction / School

Year Published: 2006

Year Read:  2014

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+  (Some Scary Imagery)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

 

I have read many books by Judy Sierra and out of all the books I had read by Judy Sierra so far, “The Gruesome Guide to World Monsters” was one of my favorites from her (even though it also had a lot to do with Henrik Drescher’s creative drawings)!  So, I picked up this unusual book from Judy Sierra along with illustrations by Stephen Gammell called “The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School” and man, did I really enjoy this strange and creative book!

The book starts off with a little girl who wanted to make the perfect project for the science fair, but could not come up with a good project that would beat out her classmates’ science projects.  So later that night, the girl stayed up late to look for a great science project on the internet and she stumbles upon a project called “Professor Swami’s Super Slime.” The girl ends up buying the slime and once she takes the slime out of the box, the slime suddenly started to grow large and it started to eat many people, which included her little sister, her father, her third grade teacher and her classmates!

Can the girl stop the slime from eating everything else before it is too late?

Read this book to find out!

Wow!  I must admit that this book was pretty impressive for the average “school project goes wrong” storyline!  Judy Sierra’s writing is extremely creative as the story is told in a rhyming prose and the rhymes managed to make the story stand out on its own as it is both hilarious and creative at the same time!  I loved the fact that the girl buys a science project that manages to go wrong in a few minutes since I usually love stories where an experiment goes wrong and starts devouring the town in the process!  Stephen Gammell’s artwork is as usual fun to look at as the students look very amusing with their creative outfits (since I remembered when I was in elementary school, the other kids used to mix and match their clothing to be creative)!  I also loved the image of the slime monster as it truly does look threatening, with its black and white glob like appearance and the fact that it changes its color throughout each page really brings out the creepiness of the monster.

Parents should know that the images of the slime monster might be too scary for smaller children, especially since the slime monster looks so threatening and frightening as it eats the kids and the adults.  For anyone who has read “Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark,” you pretty know how Stephen Gammell’s illustrations can be pretty scary at times and this book is no exception when it comes to the slime monster.  Parents might want to look over this book first before showing it to their children to see if they can handle the scenes with the slime monster.

Overall, “The Secret Science Project that Almost Ate the School” is a fantastic book for children who love reading books that deal with monsters that are unique in appearance and tone.  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the images of the slime monster might scare smaller children.