4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If ever I would leave you..., December 13, 2004
This review is from: Don't Forget to Come Back! (Hardcover)
What makes a good picture book? Well, in my humble opinion, a good picture book is the kind where you read through it, enjoy it, then glance at the copyright page and shriek with befuddlement when you realize that the original text was written waaaay way back in 1978. The year of this reviewer's humble birth. This fact is so amazingly shocking because "Don't Forget to Come Back" is a book that feels ultra-hip on top of being ultra-modern. Chalk that feeling up to the amazing illustrations by preeminent illustrator Harry Bliss. Choosing to help kids cut through the fears that overtake them when their parents go out for a night, this book is an excellent resource for any parent with a particularly clingy young `un on a Saturday night.
Our young protagonist informs us right off the bat that she is aware that her father and mother are going out for the night. Her reaction? "I didn't like that one bit!". As a result she tries every trick in her bag to keep her parents in the home. She points out that since she is not a baby she does not need a "baby" sitter. When that doesn't work she tries a different tactic. If the parents leave a thunderstorm will blow the house down, she'll throw up, and she'll be eaten by a moose (not necessarily in that order). She then attempts to come along, persuade just one parent to stay, threaten unending not-niceness, run away from home via the closet, etc. Of course, she likes her babysitter (which helps) and so she admonishes her parents with the title phrase, "Don't forget to come back!". In the morning, when she wakes, there they are in bed safe and sound. And not a single moose ate her either.
When I first read this book glancingly (is that a word?) I wasn't particularly impressed. Something about the parents' hoity-toity digs kinda threw me for a mild loop. On a closer rereading, however, I was charmed. Throughout the heroine's various cajoleries and dire warnings the parents have the distinct look of people who've heard it all before. They're not disinterested, necessarily. Just well-aware of the battle that takes place every time they want to go out for a night. Illustrator Harry Bliss gives them patient albeit dressing-for-the-night attitudes towards their only child. And I loved the babysitter. She's a great companion to the kid, acting as silly or semi-serious as called for. The best image in the whole book is that of the girl asleep in her bed wearing a clown face while the sitter, in a matching clown face, reads to her from a monster book sporting Lon Chaney's "Phantom" mug. You have to see it yourself to get the full flavor.
Writer Robie H. Harris is one of those speakers who presents on topics like, "Writing About the Powerful Feelings and Real Concerns of Young Children". I don't know if she was aware of the form her book would take when she originally wrote it in 1978. In a novel twist, the book is rife with speech bubbles. This gives it a particularly contemporary air and makes it a very visually interesting piece. It's not a graphic novel for kids or anything. Just an original presentation of material that could have been rather dull and isn't.
Many many children freak out over the idea that their parents won't be coming back from their nighttime rendezvous. And many many picture books have broken their backs trying to cash in on reassuring these kids' fears. "Don't Forget to Come Back" does it in such a way that it's amusing to both children and adults alike. For a wry picture book that knows just how much slack to give kids (without sacrificing their point of view) this little number is an ideal choice. Consider it a boon to party-hardy parents everywhere.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Don't Forget to Get Your Kid This Book., June 6, 2006
This review is from: Don't Forget to Come Back! (Hardcover)
This is such a sweet, funny way for kids to wrestle with the horror of their parents GOING OUT. BY THEMSELVES. ("Wait, I'm NOT the center of the universe?") My boys love it, and regularly shout at me when I'm going out, "Don't forget to come back!"
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Don't Forget to Come Back, November 1, 2005
This review is from: Don't Forget to Come Back! (Hardcover)
This was a witty book describing the fears of children when the babysitter is coming. I found it a pleasure to read. The book uses a language the children are comfortable and familar with. It describes how date night for the parents can be just a fun for the kids. This is a must read in the classroom or at home.
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