Stars: 5 out of 5
Pros: Good News - Simply written picture book with a good
story
Cons: Bad News, um Bad
News, um....
The Bottom Line:
Simply told story
Where pictures carry the day
Enjoyable book
Good News - This is No Bad News
I’ve got good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first? I can remember my parents saying that lots of
times while I was growing up. And it
also forms the basis of Good News, Bad News, a fun picture book for kids.
Rabbit is excited because he has made a picnic to share with
his friend Mouse. But just as they are
ready to eat, it starts to rain. Rabbit
brought his umbrella, but the wind picks up and blows Mouse and the umbrella
away.
The story keeps going that way with Rabbit trying to make
good out of a bad situation only to have something even worse happen. But the characters don’t fall into the simple
optimist/pessimist paradigm. Yes, Rabbit
is optimistic and Mouse is pessimistic, but it’s hard to blame it all on that
when they are being chased by bees or a bear, for example. And some of the story relies on Rabbit being
prepared.
But here’s the hook of this book. The story is told using only three words:
Good, Bad, and News. That means the
picture do most of the story telling. It
also means you can read it aloud in just a few minutes, and kids can pick it up
and “read” it on their own even before they can read.
That puts lots of pressure on the pictures. Fortunately, they deliver. They are cartoony, but still close enough to
realistic that it’s easy and fun to follow.
A couple of the pictures took me a few seconds to figure out, but looking
at the next picture usually cleared up any confusion I had immediately. The illustrations are mostly browns and grays
and muted greens, but that just makes the red apples and the pink frosting
stand out more.
All told, Good News, Bad News is a fun picture book that
kids and adults will enjoy reading together.
In my mind, that’s all good news.
I received a copy of this book via Amazon's Vine program.
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