Can't Beat Santa! Dinosaur Vs. Santa by Bob Shea



ROAR! I’M A DINOSAUR!

I AM GETTING READY FOR SANTA.

DINOSAUR VS. ... LETTER TO SANTA!

Bob Shea’s endearing little red dinosaur is back, ready to take on the challenges of the holiday season with a merry ROAR!

With a scribble and and self-congratulatory ROAR, he finishes his missive and slams it into the mailbox. Now on to other jolly Yuletide jobs.

But first, a littler dino has to be properly turned out for the tasks ahead, so he slips on his festive red and green snowman sweater. Dinosaur vs. tree trimming? Colored balls? Twinkly lights? No problem. With a cheery roar, he finishes up the fir – at least as far as he can reach, which is only the bottom boughs.

Then he’s off to the next task–presents for Mom and Dad. With a few popsicle sticks and paints he whips up a picture frame for his loving self-portrait. ROAR! Gingerbread man cookies for Santa? Dinosaur decorates them with glee! Double ROAR! Being good until Christmas. Um, ROAR???

Christmas is under control!

Except for the hardest task of all, getting Dinosaur to sleep on Christmas Eve!

TOSS! TURN!

NOW DINOSAUR WILL DO SOMETHING NO DINOSAUR SHOULD EVER DO!

You guessed it. Dinosaur gives in to temptation and sneaks a peak at what no youngster is ever supposed to see–what is making that distinctive jingle jingle down in the living room. Does Santa know? Will he retrieve all the toys and take them back for some other youngster who stays in bed on Christmas Eve?

It’s the old story of spying on Santa, in Bob Shea’s newest, Dinosaur vs. Santa (Hyperion, 2012) in which this adorable dino tot takes on Santa and the rest of the holiday stuff. Will there be a happy ROAR or two at Dinosaur’s house on Christmas morning?

Earlier books in Shea’s series are Dinosaur vs. Bedtime, Dinosaur vs. the Library, and his ever-popular magnum opus, Dinosaur vs. the Potty (Board Book). A winning combination for stuffing any stocking!

Toilet Triumph: Dinosaur Vs. The Potty by Bob Shea

I DON'T NEED TO USE THE POTTY.

ROAR!

Anyone who has ever known a toddler who insists that he does not have to visit the potty knows what Dinosaur is up to here. He'll do everything and anything and go almost anywhere--except to the loo!

"Roar, Roar, Roar," he shouts as he mixes and chugs a whole pitcher of lemonade.  Does he have to go now?  NOPE! 

Dinosaur takes on all kinds of watery challenges to prove his anti-potty prowess. Splash in the sprinkler? Gulp three, count 'em, THREE juice boxes with lunch? Hose down his whale? Spray everything in sight? You would think he'd have to lurch toward the loo, jump for the john, and leap for the lavatory.

NOOOOOOO!!

Roaring in triumph, Dinosaur stomps in the leftover puddles, water going everywhere. Dinosaur is winning the battle of the toilet. Or is he?

That impromptu triumphant ballet is beginning to look a lot like a...

POTTY DANCE?

Sorry, show's over, folks. Gotta GO!

Will he make it to the little boys' room in time to avoid potty disaster? Bob Shea's Dinosaur vs. the Potty (Board Book) (Hyperion, 2012), all dressed up in a fresh new board book format, will have even hardcore potty resisters giggling and roaring along at Dinosaur's avoidance of the inevitable. Little Dinosaur, drawn up in Shea's signature comic style in black-line and bright colors, sets the scene for for an impending near miss. Will the potty win?  (Doesn't it always?) Preschoolers will empathize with this anti-potty protagonist even as they root for him to win the run for the restroom derby.

Bob Shea's other delightful Dinosaur books include Dinosaur vs. Bedtime, Dinosaur vs. Santa, (see my review here) and Dinosaur vs. the Library.

Case Closed! Dinosaur Vs. Mommy by Bob Shea

MOMMY TAKING A QUICK SHOWER! (ROAR!!)

TRAIN! (ROAR!)

BUNNY! (ROAR! ROAR!)

FLUSH!!

DINOSAUR WINS! (ROAR! ROAR!! ROAR!!!)

While Mommy is seeking to make short shrift of a shower, little Dinosaur enjoys a bit of water play himself, dropping first his toy train and then his plush bunny down the toilet and flushing!

There's a rip-roaring dinosaur flood ready for Mommy when she steps out of the shower.

But that's not even the beginning of Dinosaur's day with Mommy, which started with a roar with Mommy trying to catch a few extra winks of sleep and Dino bouncing on her bed with what seems an excess of exuberance.

"MOMMY!  MOMMY!! MOMMY!!!....MOMMY!!!!!!!

The day provides plenty of contests with the ever-patient Mommy--an excursion to the supermarket, tossing the freshly-folded laundry, and finally reluctantly getting into the bath (ROAR!), reluctantly getting out of the bath, (ROAR, ROAR), and putting on pajamas (and taking the tighty-whities off his head).

Mommy collapses into the comfy chair! Dinosaur wins, right? MORE ROARS!

Will Mommy fall asleep first? It looks like the judgment is with Dinosaur's side of the case, until, in a tribute to the power of Mommies everywhere, he climbs into Mommy's soft, warm lap, in Bob Shea's latest, Dinosaur vs. Mommy (A Dinosaur vs. Book) (Hyperion Books, 2015). In Shea's vibrant Dinosaur Vs. series, his ebullient little Dinosaur has already taken on many toddler challenges--bedtime, school, the library, Santa, and his magnum conquest, the potty! A close look at the book's cover reveals that his sweet Mommy and Dinosaur drawing is being done by Dinosaur with Mommy's pink lipstick on the wall, followed by a quick sequence of sight gags that will keep preschoolers roaring with giggles as Dinosaur makes his way through the day with Mom, taking on each challenge with verve and the seemingly inexhaustible energy of little ones. "Shea's Dinosaur titles will never fail to be read-aloud hits," roars Kirkus Reviews.

Back to School: Dinosaur Vs.School by Bob Shea

ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!

It's the first day of school, and Dinosaur has all the right stuff. He's got a snazzy retro plaid jacket and a cool lunch box.

He's got a comeback for every remark. (ROAR! ROAR!)

And he's got ... enthusiasm!

Meeting new friends? No problem with that forceful personality and grin!

DINOSAUR WINS!

Playing dress-up? Dinosaur takes charge, decked out as a policeman.

Art?

Dinosaur spreads the glue, sprinkles the glitter with abandon, and winds up with googly stick-on eyes stuck all over his body. Here's lookin' at you, guys!

Dinosaur wins again.

School snacks?

No sweat for Dinosaur to chomp the "monkey snacks." Slurp! Apple slices are history! Gobble! Raisins all gone already. Crunch! Pretzels? No problem-o! Dino wins again!

Music class?

Dino is practically a one-man band. Guitar? He can strum it. Drum? He can beat it. Accordion?He can squeeze like you wouldn't believe! Roar! Roar! Roar!

There's just one school task that stops Dinosaur and his classmates in their tracks, horrified!

SOMETHING THEY HAVE NEVER DONE BEFORE!

IT'S TOO MUCH FOR DINOSAUR!

It's clean-up time in the old schoolroom. But before Dinosaur can squeeze out more than one ROAR! he gets the idea. He leads the others in a whirlwind tidying up time, with everyone pitching in to leave the classroom spotless for the second day of school! Two ROARS for day two!

EVERYONE WINS!

Everyone roars as they head out the doors, in Bob Shea's back-to-school-themed Dinosaur vs. School (A Dinosaur vs. Book) (Hyperion Books, 2014). While this one in Shea's popular series lacks the visceral humor and focus of his earlier entries, he does a fine job of introducing first-timers to the activities to be expected in school, showing that an enthusiastic can-do attitude can go a long way on the big day. For a less bravura intro to school, pair this one with Eric Litwin and James Dean's equally positive (and best-selling) Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes (read my 2011 review here) which covers the same territory in a bit more detail, plus a sing-along tune to help move those first wary steps through the schoolroom door.

An Indelicate Condition! Who Wet My Pants? by Bob Shea

COME AND GET 'EM! ALL YOUR FAVORITES!

Scout Leader Bear has do-nuts, especially chosen for each camper in his troop.

But his largess is rewarded by embarrassed looks from the other campers. They all stare, but not at the donuts.

"Ahem!"

Bear follows their glance. Uh-oh!

He vows that no one gets donuts until he gets a confession.

WHAT TH'...! WHO WET MY PANTS!

I'LL GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS!

There's an awkward silence. Nobody allows himself even a small smirk at the unintended pun.

Timid Tim Turtle finally says that it's likely just an accident. Big Foot admits that he used to wet his pants sometimes. Dog suggests that it could happen to anyone. But Bear demands a confession from the culprit!

ALL I WANT IS JUSTICE... AND DRY PANTS.

But slowly the truth dawns on Bear. Could that gallon of lemonade with breakfast or those moments listening to the waterfall have had something to do with his, er, condition? Maybe his pants just sprung a leak, leading him to blame his friends.... all of which have tried to be understanding.

Bear decides it's time to change both the subject and his pants and pass the donuts, in Bob Shea's Who Wet My Pants? (Little, Brown and Company, 2019), a tinkle tale which will have kids giggling from the beginning, as Bear's denials grow louder as the evidence becomes more compelling. Zachariah OHora's detailed drawings only add to the snickers of this book about an unfortunate incident that is not all that uncommon among youngsters. Adds Booklist, "OHora has illustrated a number of picture books funny enough to make anyone wet their pants."

For more comic books from Bob Shea, don't miss his Dinosaur vs. the Potty (A Dinosaur vs. Book (2)) and other books in the Dinosaur vs. series. (Read reviews here).

Bunnies for Lunch?: Don't Play With Your Food! by Bob Shea

"OUTTA MY WAY, TREES!   DRY UP, LAKE!

YOU'RE NOT SO HOT, SUN!

HI. I'M BUDDY! I'M A MONSTER.

I'M GOING TO EAT ALL YOU BUNNIES!"

Buddy gets right down to business. Bunnies are for eating. Period.

Although the three white bunnies quail at the idea of jumping into his mouth for lunch, they're smarter than Buddy.

"OH, PLEASE, NO! WE ARE ABOUT TO MAKE CUPCAKES!"

Buddy has more bravado than brains and grudgingly decides to let the baker bunnies finish the cupcakes, so he'll have bunnies as his entree' and a dessert besides. He agrees to play with the bunnies until the cupcakes come out of the oven, and the cakes are so irresistible that, after eating most of them himself, he decides to save the bunnies for breakfast.

But when he returns the next day, the bunnies invite him to go swimming with them and warn Buddy that he'll get a cramp if he swims with a stomach full of bunny. He has a great time splashing and sunning with the guys, and falls asleep before he can eat them. When he awakes, he can't quite bring himself to do the deed.

"THEY LOOK SO CUTE WHEN THEY'RE ASLEEP!"

But the next day the bunnies are all wearing orange-stripey Buddy Fan Club sweaters. A monster can't eat his fan club, can he?

Then the bunnies invite Buddy to the carnival and choose the most nausea-inducing rides, and Buddy is too queasy to stomach any sort of bunny for the rest of the day.

The bunnies seem to have more tricks up their sleeves than Buddy has appetite for eating them, in Bob Shea's latest monster giggle fest, Buddy and the Bunnies in: Don't Play with Your Food! (Hyperion, 2014). Buddy even loses all street cred with the other monsters, who point out his obvious mistake:

"DIDN'T YOUR MOM EVER TELL YOU NOT TO PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD?

Bob Shea's scary-cute monster is no match for the clever bunnies, who seems to keep multiplying with each page turn, until even dim-bulb Buddy finally takes notice. Shea's theme, that fun friends trump even lunch and dinner, will please kids, and the bunnies' increasing numbers and creative main-dish-avoidance techniques make this trickster tale a winner with the preschool/primary set. Shea's art is as wild and woolly as his main character, and judging from the title, he plans a new series built around Buddy and the bunnies.  Kirkus Reviews writes, "Shea's storytelling still shines. Children often see themselves as the underdog in an adultcentric world; they'll be rooting for the bunnies (all three... wait, 72 of them)".

Pair this new one with any of Shea's similarly slapstick Dinosaur stories, such as Dinosaur vs. Bedtime and Dinosaur vs. the Potty (Board Book). (Read my rip-RAHHR-ing reviews here!)

Just Between Friends: Ballet Cat:The Totally Secret Secret by Bob Shea

"WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO TODAY, BALLET CAT?"

"YOU PICK, SPARKLES."

"LET'S MAKE CRAFTS!" SAYS SPARKLES.

"YAY!" ANSWERS BALLET CAT.

Best friends Ballet Cat and Sparkles the Pony never disagree. But when they spread out their art supplies and start to work, Sparkles spots a problem.

"OH, NO! WE SHOULD NOT LEAP WITH SCISSORS!"

Ballet Cat can't seem to curb her yen to dance while she crafts. And everyone knows it's not safe to jete' with sharp objects!

Time for a new plan! Sparkles produces the checkerboard and starts to set for a match. Ballet Cat is enthusiastic, so enthusiastic that she can't resist some high kicks. Kerplop goes the checkerboard with pieces sailing everywhere.

Sparkles the Pony picks them up politely and suggests that they set up a lemonade stand. But then, on the basis of recent experience, he nixes the idea right away, pointing that Ballet Cat's spins are sure to spill the lemonade sooner or later. Thoughtfully, Sparkles suggests that she might eschew spinning for the day. Ballet Cat replies, just a bit sarcastically.

"HA! GOOD ONE, SPARKLES!"

Like that's going to happen! It seems there's only one choice that accommodates Ballet Cat's spinning, twirling, and kicking. They will have to play ballet yet again today!

But as Ballet Cat fluffs her tutu and starts twirling, she notices that Sparkles is not getting a kick out of kicking and his twirls are half-hearted. Something is wrong, she says to Sparkle. (Ballerinas know these things, you know.)

"I CAN'T TELL YOU. IT'S A SECRET SECRET."

"IS IT THAT YOU ARE NOT SO GOOD AT BALLET? THAT IS NOT A VERY SECRET SECRET, SPARKLES."

"NO, NOT THAT." SAYS SPARKLES SOFTLY.

Sparkles tells Ballet Cat that he knows she won't be his friend if he tells HER his secret secret. Ballet Cat promises that nothing can change their friendship.

"SOMETIMES I DON'T WANT TO PLAY BALLET," HE CONFESSES, WITH A TEAR.

But Ballet Cat has her own surprising secret secret to tell, in Bob Shea's Ballet Cat The Totally Secret Secret (Hyperion Books, 2015), a brand-new easy reading tale of BFFs who put their friendship above everything else. In the straightforward style of Mo Willems' award-winning Elephant and Piggie stories for beginning readers, Shea's bold black line and boisterous colors contrast with the sensitivity of his narration in which real friends understand each other's feelings. (Cat reveals that even she is tired of ballet play every day.) Shea's expressive comic drawings--which use three dots and squiggles for Ballet Cat's necklace and tutu--are full of movement and his spare but skillful cartooning clearly reveals the emotions of his best-best friends. "Shea mines Ballet Cat’s dialed-up enthusiasm and Sparkles’s hangdog expressions for everything they are worth," says Publishers Weekly's starred review. A promising new series for young readers takes the stage, a fantastic follow-up for kids familiar with Shea's hilarious emergent readers' favorites, his Dinosaur Vs. series (see reviews here).

Wreckin' Reptile: Rex Wrecks It! by Ben Clanton

For adults in the room, who hasn't been frustrated with the toddler who takes more joy in knocking down the block structure than building it up? No matter how neat the ramp or how clever the bridge or how tall the tower, as soon as it's done....CRASH! Down it comes.

Rex is that guy.

The little T. Rex's friends Gizmo, a thoughtful little robot, Sprinkles, a sweet, unicorn-horned bunny, and Wild, a horned and fanged little monster, are past that stage.

GIZMO'S OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD ROCKET?

REX WRECKS IT!

RAWR!!

Ditto for Sprinkle's magical floating heart and Wild's wooden wonder of the world. RAWR! and RAWR!

REX WRECKS EVERYTHING!

The three put their heads together. Gizmo's calculator grinds its gears as he blueprints his grand design on the chalkboard. The others get into the act. They pull together all the blocks they have, determined to build a design so strong that not even Rex can wreck it!

IT'S AWESOMERIFIC!

But not for long.

With his strongest RAWR, Rex roars and down it comes. Satisfied, Rex chomps a cracker, proud of his prowess. The three builders are aghast! How could he?

But Rex notices that his friends are not cheering his mighty deed. Suddenly he gets it. In a tiny voice, he says his own version of "sorry."

"RAWRY."

But Gizmo has a brainstorm and the three friends figure out a way to get Rex to let them actually finish building something. They let him help!

It's the biggest, tallest, fanciest block building ever. The four share a moment of happy pride! But then...

THERE'S JUST ONE MORE THING...TO MAKE IT EVEN BETTER....

All four of the friends give in to the temptation in Ben Clanton's Rex Wrecks It! (Candlewick Press, 2014).  Who could resist? And, after all, now they get to build it AGAIN. Clanton's engaging and expressive pencil, ink, and watercolor illustrations fill the pages with energy, as Rex's more serious companions respond to his rambunctious but infectious exuberance which finally draws them into the fun. "All told, a fine little fable," says Kirkus Reviews, and one that pairs well with Bob Shea's plays-well-with-others story, Dinosaur vs. School (A Dinosaur vs. Book) (Hyperion Books, 2014). (See review here.)

Ty Rex Rules: Tyrannosaurus Wrecks! by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

STEGOSAURUS STACKS.

TRICERATOPS ERECTS.

GALLIMIMUS BUILDS...

All the preschoolers are on task, playing well with others. Until, OH, HECK!...

TYRANNOSAURUS WRECKS!

Ty is big and brash, a blunderbuss of a classmate, who stomps into the scene and kicks the supports out from under Stego's careful construction. The little builders are knocked back on their heels in dismay.

At the art table, another circle of youngsters is engrossed in their creations. Little Apatosaurus is coloring her picture; Velociraptor sprinkles a finishing touch  of glitter on his painting, while Pteranodon watches.  Here comes Ty and... (You guessed it!) crayons and paints fly!

TYRANNOSAURUS WRECKS!

Another student thinks it's safe to practice his cursive on the chalkboard. Ty grabs an eraser and wipes it all away.

Now Teacher has to step in with Ty's marching orders: NO! GO!

Ty goes to a well-earned time-out and his little classmates are quietly relieved. The classroom is quiet.

But not as quiet as Ty's time-out room. He gets bored, then miserable. Finally, he feels bad about the way he has behaved. Can he start this day all over again?

Even a typhoon of a Tyrannosaurus gets a second chance to have a good day, as Ty makes amends and the story ends with a surprise group giggle for everyone, in Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen's latest, Tyrannosaurus Wrecks! (Abrams Books, 2014). Illustrator Zacharias Ohora paces the paging action perfectly with Bardhan-Quillan's rhyming quatrains, and his cheery preschool classroom contrasts well with his young tempest of a tyrannosaurus, who finally figures out that his more mature classmates are more into making something than demolishing stuff.

For hard-core dino fans, the endpapers offer drawings and name of all the dinos, including even the bit players in this story. Author Bardhan-Quallen makes great use of the old T. Rex pun in funny verses at which emergent readers will enjoy trying their hands at reading aloud. Pair this one with the Caldecott-winning Aaron Reynolds' new Here Comes Destructosaurus! or one of Bob Shea's Dinosaur sagas, such as Dinosaur vs. the Potty (Board Book).