The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Heide, Florence Parry , Pierce, Roxanne Heide

Always Listen to Your Mother

32 pp. | Hyperion | August, 2010 | Trade ISBN 978-1-4231-1395-9 $15.99

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Kyle M. Stone. Readers will be tickled by the premise: Ernest, an obedient little thing, "always listened to his mother." When new neighbors arrive, Ernest is excited to make a friend--a monster-kid named Vlapid whose bad behavior is encouraged by his Morticia Addams-esque mom. Stone's faux-Victorian illustrations, all swirling fog and dark-clad characters, are mostly humorous and just a teensy bit eerie.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz