No More Hand-To-Mouth! Thumb Love by Elise Primavera

"HELLO. I AM LULU.

I AM A THUMBSUCKER."

Lulu has heard all the dire warnings. She's experienced the giggles, pointing, and derision of her non-digitally-addicted agemates. Finally, even her grandmother speaks those dreaded words:

"DON'T YOU THINK YOU'RE TOO OLD FOR THAT THUMB?"

But the thumb seemingly has a mind of its own, calling to her even when she tries to dump the habit.

"I LOVE YOU," LULU TOLD HER THUMB.

"DITTO," SAID THE THUMB.

But all her peers' disapproval and her elder's dire warnings tick away in the back of her brain, until one night Lulu has the ultimate thumbsucker's nightmare. She dreams that she looks in the mirror and finds her front teeth sticking straight out. Suddenly she can't articulate an "s" sound to save her soul (or "thave her thoul.")

"THITH ITH RIDICULOUTH! IT'TH ALL YOUR FAULT, THUMB..."

Lulu realizes that her addiction has dire consequences for her future happiness, and comes up with a do-able twelve-step program to help her quit being a sucker.

In Elise Primavera's latest, Thumb Love (Robin Carey Books, 2010), takes a witty but salient look at a problem that is all too common. As an addiction, thumbsucking is not a life threatening, but it's one that causes a lot of misery, and Primavera's humorous, self-aware heroine and very funny cartoon illustrations, especially her anthropomorphic talking thumb, help this little homily leave a good taste behind as it provides a few giggles, especially among readers and listeners who have already kicked the habit.

For more of Elise Primavera's wit and wisdom, see another of her strong-minded heroines at work in Louise the Big Cheese: Divine Diva and Louise the Big Cheese and the La-di-da Shoes.