Keith GravesReseñas

A fun twist on the classic tale.

Genre
Humorous stories
Picture books for children
Subject
Chickens
Cleverness
Courage
Eggs
Size
Smallness and bigness
Social acceptance

This review originally posted at The Children's Book and Media Review

Master Edgar Dreadbury thinks that Halloween is boring. Choosing a costume is a chore. Dressing up as a pirate, mummy, clown, or other things doesn't please him. He wanted to be something terrifying. When he goes to a different shop to find a costume, he puts a dime into a big, grimy machine called the MONSTERATOR. Edgar was MONSTERATED, turning him into something unrecognizable and terrifying everyone from squirrels to girls. When he’s decided that he’s done with scaring people on Halloween, he doesn’t know how to turn back into a human. In the end, he decides that staying as a monster is how he wants to be.

Even though the book is about monsters and doesn’t have a particularly happy ending, the illustrations are surprisingly cute. Even in his monster form, Edgar is more adorable than terrifying, making sure that small children who love Halloween won’t be spooked by this book. The book has a nice rhyme scheme for people to read aloud. In the back of the book, there are pages of flaps so that children can MONSTERATE Edgar on their own. The book has 625 monsters for children to find. The book doesn’t teach any lessons, but the interactive nature may help small children be excited about Halloween and reading.

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An overly ordered young person gets taken over by unruly hair and experiences the pleasures of a more chaotic lifestyle. Not bad.½

Bah ha ha! This book made me laugh aloud! On a teeny little farm, a hen lays a humongous egg, out of which hatches…a massive chicken! The only problem is that it’s so large, none of the other chickens knows it’s a chicken. Every time Chicken Big does something new, the smallest chicken (in a voice that rings alarmingly true for anybody who knows a know-it-all) confidently declares it something new: an elephant, a squirrel, an umbrella. Will the other chickens ever realize that Chicken Big…is a chicken?

My favorite part about Chicken Big was the smallest chicken's lines and how they made Chicken Big feel.

Funny and inventive, a little scary perhaps for the pre-school set who haven't really grasped real versus fantasy yet. Imagine if you had the actual best scary monster costume ever and then you find out it's not a costume...you ARE the best scary monster forever. If you're a gloomy, scary kid - it's heaven!

BIG words that were a blast to read aloud and excite my kids' growing vocabularies! BIG ideas about trying new things and how sometimes letting yourself take risks can be totally worth it! BIG bold colors and funny illustrations that kept everyone engaged and giggling. Winner Winner!!

Frank the monster decides he to strut his stuff on stage but when he starts to dance, pieces of his body fall right off!

This book came highly recommended from several sources, but I found it disappointing. Yeah, it's a little bit silly but it's also quite a bit gross (e.g., brains and eyeballs falling out and rolling about). If you're looking perhaps for a not too frightening but a still somewhat creepy book for Halloween, this could work. But personally, I was not thrilled with the slim and only mildly humorous plot.

For the record, some (including me) may object to the use of the phrase "what the heck" in the book -- while it' s not really a terrible curse or anything, I'm not sure that many parents want their 5-year-old walking around repeating it.

The illustrations are largely cartoonish and reminiscent of a more colorful Tim Burtonesque kind of grotesque.½

I thought this informative fantasy was hilarious. Hilda Mae Heifer has lost her moo due to an unfortunate accident so she goes on an adventure to discover her sound.
This book is quite fast paced, as far as the authors voice and characters depicted within. There was good farm-related vocabulary within the book and I thought it was a funny way to introduce animal noises within the book. Overall a very unique, funny and engaging read. This book can be used for creative writing assignments, and lessons involving farm life.

Well, I don't think one needs to know American Idol to appreciate the audition jokes. Or the characters' resemblances to Durante or Freud or whoever. Those are just for the adults. What *I* didn't care for was how dependent the book is on the reader's ability to say or imagine the sounds. I mean, yes, picture-books benefit from sound-effects - but this was just too much, for me.

The concept has been done so many other times before, and to better effect. As it happens, I read [b:Chester's Way|20692|Chester's Way|Kevin Henkes|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1348238013s/20692.jpg|1705170] immediately before this and in that one Chester learns the same lesson that Barcelona does, but plausibly, with friends, not with crazy magic. Otoh, there's something about the name Barcelona Smith, and something about the Play-Dough (TM) style hair, and the goggles etc., that just tickles me.

Pretty funny. I like the attention to detail: Frank's 'bunny' slippers were actually 'rat' slippers, and the cat was apparently created by the same mad scientist who created Frank. In with the humor was a message about doing what you brings you joy, whether others agree or not, even in the face of adversity. The more I think about, the more I like it. 3.5 stars.

Impulse grab at the library because I've liked others by Graves. This was fun, but I just can't say it's special enough to recommend. I used to be a perfectionist (if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right) and this story would not have helped me. I think I like Graves' animals better than his people. The monsters from whom Loretta must save the world are the highlight of the illustrations here.

Oh goodness. Another laugh out loud. Thank you [a:Lane Smith|23573|Lane Smith|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg] and [a:Mélanie Watt|308542|Mélanie Watt|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-F-50x66.jpg] (and others) for opening up the concept of a book like this, using the endpapers, back cover, different fonts, etc. to take full advantage of the fact that a picture-book can be so much more than a simple illustrated story. This may not be the very best example of that style, but it was creative and heart-warming.... And, as someone who actually helped raise backyard chickens, I can assure you that the scenes of panic caused by reacting without thinking are pitch-perfect.

I couldn't resist picking this up from the display at the library. I grew up in Wisconsin; I'm a fan of cows. Hilda is a very funny cow. I can imagine having a lot of fun with this book and a couple of giggly preschoolers as they tell her all the reasons she isn't a goose, and therefore mustn't honk, isn't a pig, and therefore mustn't oink, etc.

Loretta: Ace Pinky Scout is about a girl who believes she is perfect. Just like her ancestors, she excels at everything she does and has a badge to prove it. The only badge missing is for roasting marshmallows. Loretta practices for months, but when the time comes to earn her bade, she burns the marshmallow. She is completely devastated, until her grandmother's picture talks to her. Her gran lets her know that she wasn't perfect and neither was her ancestors, and thats ok. Loretta feels better and decides to focus on what she is good at. This is a story about overcoming the pressure you put on yourself. No one is perfect and we all have flaws. We have to embrace what we are good at and use it for good.

Mommy, I like this book"

Mommy, I like this book"

The story is amazing but I am afraid that the pictures might be too scary for story time....

The story is amazing but I am afraid that the pictures might be too scary for story time....

The story is amazing but I am afraid that the pictures might be too scary for story time....

The story is amazing but I am afraid that the pictures might be too scary for story time....

51 months - O really liked this one and thought it was very funny.