My kids absolutely love it when I or my husband read out loud to them. (Picture book.This post may contain affiliate ads at no cost to you. The well-told story, along with the bold colors of the illustrations and the precisely rendered expressions on Llama Llama’s face-from dismay at having to put away his toys to go shopping, to rage as he throws his temper tantrum, to chagrin in its aftermath, to pure delight as he enjoys his ice cream cone-make this a perfect choice for preschool read-alouds. In clever rhymes that will induce giggles in readers of all ages, Dewdney creates a touching resolution to an all-too-familiar parental predicament. I think shopping’s boring, too- / but at least I’m here with you.” Together, the two clean up the mess, finish the shopping and then go for ice cream. Mama takes quick control of the situation, first getting Llama Llama to stop throwing all of the groceries out of the shopping cart and then speaking gently to him: “Please stop fussing, little llama. Like all the other “Baby Shark”–themed books in the current tsunami, however, it relies heavily on its readers’ preexisting familiarity with the song for its success.Īn ephemeral but pleasantly coherent take on the viral hitĪdorable and endearing Llama Llama, who made his first appearance in Dewdney’s Llama Llama Red Pajama (2005), returns, this time throwing a temper tantrum at the Shop-O-Rama.

Grandma shark (distinguished by faint wrinkles around the lips, as is Grandpa on the next page-perhaps they forgot their dentures?) swims up next, and then all are seen grinning like the “hungry sharks” they are before the children, now numbering five, “run away!” to join their caregivers, “safe at last!” Kudos to Lewis for creating a plausible visual narrative and peopling it with diverse children. Cue “doo doo doo.” Then Daddy shark appears, and a third child joins the group, pointing as the earlier two make the “Baby Shark” hand motions. “Baby shark! Doo doo doo doo doo doo!” The verse repeats twice more, the “doo doo doo” printed in wavy lines, before it is punctuated by a concluding “Baby shark!” With the turn of the page, it is joined by “Mama shark!” and another child walks up. “Will we see a baby shark?” Of course they do: A cutely snub-nosed (and biologically impossible) shark pup smiles from the tank…and the earworm takes over. A trip to the aquarium triggers a “Baby Shark” flash mob.Ī parent and child enter the aquarium hand in hand.

Sea Shapes by Suse MacDonald