I was excited to see a new Pete the Cat picture book, but this lacks the awesomeness of the first two Petes. In this new installment (written not by Eric Litwin, but by the illustrator James Dean and his wife Kimberly), Pete is feeling blue. Luckily, Grumpy Toad (who does not look grumpy, nor is he actually grumpy, despite the name) lends Pete his COOL, BLUE, MAGIC sunglasses. The glasses cheer Pete right up!

Then Pete meets a grumpy squirrel. He pays it forward by letting the squirrel wear the glasses. So, I expected the squirrel to be wearing them on the next page, but THEY'RE BACK ON PETE. So Pete just let squirrel wear the glasses for a hot minute? Huh. Pete lets a series of grumpy animals try the glasses, and on the next page, those glasses are always back on Pete. I guess Pete's not as generous as Grumpy Toad.

Finally, the COOL, BLUE, MAGIC sunglasses break and a wise owl tells Pete that he never really needed them to be happy (like the Good Witch in the Wizard of Oz telling Dorothy she always had the power to go home). Then, on the final page, GRUMPY TOAD IS WEARING THE GLASSES! Even though they just broke! Either they magically un-broke or Grumpy Toad has a stash of COOL, BLUE, MAGIC sunglasses.

Not a bad effort, but not a great one either.

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Pete the Cat wakes up feeling grumpy, and nothing seems to be going his way, but with the help of some rocking magic sunglasses from Grumpy Toad, Pete learns that a good mood has been inside him all along. The coauthor is James Dean.

Pete the cat is just too cool and never loses his cool. He’s so upbeat and positive. James Dean does a great job conveying his upbeat ness with his illustrations. They are so colorful and upbeat yet calm and cool all at the same time. How do illustrators do that! I mean I know the mechanics behind it but to apply it and make all those things happen at once and convey a message. James Dean is amazing at that with his Pete the cat series. ( )

This is the first Pete the Cat book I have read. I chose it because I know the series is popular with children. I liked the moral of this story, that you don't need "COOL, BLUE, MAGIC sunglasses" to have a good day, you just have to try and make the best of things. The colors are extremely bright but the illustrations are pleasant and I think they would be very appealing to children. The repetition of the book will also be appealing to Pre-K and K students. I am happy to have this as a new addition to my classroom library. ( )

Pete the Cat and his Magic Sunglasses is a colorful picture book from the Pete the Cat Series. In this book Pete the Cat was having a bad day, so a friend told him to wear these slades that change your perspective. As Pete walked down the street many of his friends were sad so he told them to wear the shades and they were happy. He thought he was happy because of the sunglasses but realized that you have to look for the good in everyday. ( )