The Contrary Kid [Hardcover]

Matt S. Cibula (Author), Brian Strassburg (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up

Meet the Contrary Kid. He knows that pizza is fashionable when worn on the head and that blueberries make a fine bread. He associates with a snake and a frog, and sometimes a gorilla. Broccoli ice cream is his favourite dinner, and his colouring book hangs in the Louvre. Most of all, he understands that it'' much more fin to break away from the pack than to just follow along. In this original off beat story, author Matt Cibula and illustrator Brian Strassburg have painted funky, bluesy rhymes and rhythms with bold, wacky images. The result in The Contrary Kid: a fun-affirming book that will enchant readers of all ages.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Weirdness for its own sake seems to be the point of this artless offering. After a page-one definition of "contrary" that includes the terms "willful" and "buggin' out," the Contrary Kid introduces himself. "I color all outside the lines, but please don't disapprove?/ They took my favorite coloring book and hung it in the Louvre," he boasts. Elsewhere our hero expresses his fondness for bathing in "spinach soup and collard greens"; admits to craving "chocolate caterpillar pie'"; and confides, "I'm really very selfish but I'll give you all my money/ I hop around the house a lot and roar just like a bunny." Cibula's (Slumgullion, the Executive Pig) plotless, hyperactive couplets are set in varied typefaces, with some words printed in colors and others as pictographs (the word "porcupine" has quills, "caterpillar" is written on said insect, etc.). This littered text competes for attention with equally overblown cartoons?and, as Strassburg stretches and warps his figures into ungainly compositions, the overall effect is none too pretty. Ages 4-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 2^-4. Fans of the wacky humor of Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky will enjoy this unconventional picture book, which uses bright, colorful cartoons and a kooky rhyming text to relay the antics of an eccentric youngster. Told by the contrary kid himself, the narrative is actually just a listing of his oddball behaviors, which include jumping rope inside the kitchen sink and wearing pizza on his head. By book's end, the contrary kid has met his match in Taquandra Fu, a new girl in his class, who turns out to be a female version of himself. Closing comments relay the message: it's okay, even desirable, to be different. A book that encourages kids to be happy with who they are: "We're both contrary kids--we're happy and we're smart. To truly be contrary is a science and an art." Lauren Peterson

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Zino Pr Childrens Books; 1St Edition edition (November 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559331771
• ISBN-13: 978-1559331777
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 9.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,270,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A unusual & extraordinary youth,shares his outlook w/others, July 11, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Contrary Kid (Hardcover)

Totally cool for kids ages 8 and up, with a glow-in-the-dark cover, and a secret code to crack! Soon there will be a sequel about a multicultural girl, "WHAT'S UP WITH YOU, TAQUANDRA FU?"