Customer Reviews

No Haircut Today!

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I disagree that NO HAIRCUT is "unfocused" or "lacks depth" as another reviewer thought. That reviewer seems unsetteld because "no solution is offered" and seems to miss the point that an important nurturing and caretaking solution is offered.
The solution being to meet your child where he is in his deveopmental fears and challenges, and to offer a safe haven first and foremost.( a haven of love, of humor, of compassion). The solution is to create a solid safe base so that the child can begin to feel secure enough inside himself to move beyond his fears and resistances. That is not done by a rigid "solution" but by trusting that you as parent are initiating a process. For me the pictures, rather than lacking depth and style, showed all the raw emotion that only this loosely penned style can accomplish.

As a parent, sometimes I get so tired of the perfect parents and kids in children's books. Don't you? Well, No Haircut Today! is a funny story with adorable pictures that's much more realistic about the day-to-day relationship between parent and child. It has a lot to say, in a very sweet and approachable way, about love, family, and compromise. Great for younger kids and their parents, too.

Recommended for children ages 2 to 6, No Haircut Today! is an entertainingly written and illustrated picturebook by Elivia Savadier, and tells the warm and charming story of a young, scraggly-haired boy who does not like to get his hair cut. When Dominic sees scissors, he screams! His mother is very upset. But she loves him, and even if he does not get a haircut today, he just might tomorrow! The simple story and the striking, free-form illustrations make No Haircut Today! a charming and memorable storybook for beginning readers.

I disagree with your disagreement. No one asks for a rigid solution, just something that resembles a resolution, even if that means no solution. The book just sort of conveniently stops, without troubling itself with any suggestion of how one MIGHT deal with the sort of concrete issues that adults and children must face together. The really good books don't force feed you THE solution, right, but at least offer something that resembles more of a story, rather than vague comfort for adults about offering a secure place of safety. It's an ok book, but i've seen better, and we're all entitled to our thoughts about it!

Young toddler Dominic sports a smorgasbord of hairs on his head: Some of his hairs are straight, some curly; some are long, and some are short. One thing is certain, though, he "does not like to have his HAIR CUT." Would-be barbers try some gimmicky salon chairs to lure Dominic to the scissors, but he does not yield: "NO!" he shouts.

"If anyone tries to hold his head
no matter how gently
he screams!

This drama upsets his mother (who is a hair stylist herself), and Dominic wonders if she is mad at him. However, they each say "I love you," and the somewhat beleagured looking mother decides that there will be "NO HAIRCUT TODAY!" (but, "maybe...tomorrow.")Dominic looks delighted rather than comforted, almost as if he got away with something...

While not every book must have a message--and some do worse because they try to impart one--"No Haircut Today" seems unfocused. While I appreciate the flexibility shown by the mother, and the compassion for Dominic's dilemma, no solution is offered. The pictures lack depth and style (though the font changes are interesting), and that last shot of Dominic seems off. Perhaps this might be a nice story for rigid parents (if they're not offended at your gift) or haircut-phobic kids, but there's not much else going on here.