Customer Reviews

I Will Surprise My Friend! (An Elephant and Piggie Book) (Elephant & Piggie Books)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Scaring people is fun. There is really no getting around this fact. Kids know this better than anyone. Mo Willems knows that kids know this better than anyone. And now he's gone and written a book about it. Fitting right in with previous "Elephant & Piggie" titles, "I Will Surprise My Friend" provides a situation kids will relate to, presented with playfulness, wit, and an ace sense of humor.

The story begins when Gerald (the Elephant) and Piggie come upon a squirrel who is about to surprise his friend. They like the idea so much they decide to give it a try on on each other. They creep up to opposite sides of a big rock and wait to get startled. This setup is ripe for some silliness. Gerald and Piggie both start to wonder where the other one is. They look around the rock at the same time - no one there. They walk around the rock at the same time - nothing. When our heroes finally give up and head out to find each other, they finally get the shock they were hoping for.

The author's knack for getting inside the head of youngsters and seeing things from their perspective is on display here. From the way Gerald and Piggie immediately want to try something they see to how they end up waiting for the other one to scare them, beginning readers will identify with this title.

Willems continues to get his PHD in emotive minimalist illustration in "I Will Surprise My Friend". Each page brings expressions and gestures that announce the mood of each character as clear as day. Similar to other titles in this series, the story is told completely through dialog in the form of word balloons. This makes it a good choice for some good ol' individual reading. And kids will definitely want to read this one - be sure to have a couple copies on hand.

My son (almost 3 1/2) started with "Today I Will Fly" a month ago which he LOVED. As soon as we finished reading this one I was instructed to immediately read it three more times that morning (and 2 more times that afternoon). He loves that he can retell the story based on the pictures, the expressions and the short phrases. This is definitely a favorite in our house, so much that my younger son ( 1 1/2) likes to "read" them too.
It is humor that my son "gets" and adults should enjoy too.

An emergent reader series that is not boring! It's funny, you can actually listen to it again and again and again, which if your child is learning how to read or a struggling reader you will:)

It is emergent/early reader, think level 1 with decodable words repeated and introduced perfectly. Enough to gain skill but not too much to bore. (Think Dick & Jane.......easy to decode but boring)

By the author of the "Don't let the pigeon...." & "Knuffle Bunny" series and "Leonardo the terrible Monster" Mo Willems is a Caldecott winner, former Sesame Street writer and a genius!

Buy them all & look forward to nighttime or anytime storytime. (I keep some of them in the car)

This book is really cute and such a joy to read! I read it myself before reading it to the Kindergarten class, and I honestly thought it was good but I wasn't overly impressed; however, when I read it out loud to the Kindergarten students, the kids absolutely LOVED it! It kept their full attention to the very end and they all laughed out loud a couple of times. It was really cute. They enjoyed it so much that they asked me to read it a second time. The kids can really relate to the story and the emotions and thought processes that the elephant and piggie go through. I am so happy that I bought this book. It is now a class favorite. I definitely recommend it.

We love, love, love Mo Willems in our house! His books are so clever, fun, and enjoyable for children and adults alike. The Elephant and PIggie series is perfect for emergent readers because the books are written simply, with a few easy to read words on each page. My 5 yr old likes to read the books with me - he takes the part of Gerald, and I take the part of Piggie. He can read most of the stories by himself, but we both enjoy the interaction of reading it together & I do not tire of reading these books over and over.

All the Elephant & Piggie books are great, but "I Will Surprise My Friend" and "There's a Bird on Your Head" are two of the best in terms of the humor, clever writing, and entertaining expressions on the characters' faces.

Please keep the Elephant and Piggie books coming, Mo Willems!

The Elephant and Piggie series consistently manages to delight young children and adults. Although I can't speak from experience, these are books I would not tire of reading to my children, yet they're simple enough to captivate and enchant children as young as two. I don't know how he does it, but I'm so glad he has the talent.

I Will Surprise My Friend! is hilarious. Elephant and Piggie are out for a walk and come across a squirrel hiding to surprise his friend. As both squirrels loved the surprise, they quickly decide to it again. Naturally, Elephant and Piggie decide it is a good idea to surprise each other too. The joy of Elephant and Piggie books, of course, is not necessarily the plot. Telling the story is never as entertaining as reading it. Willems displays a multitude of emotions with his simple drawings, and the chemistry between Elephant and Piggie is fantastic. If you haven't read the Elephant and Piggie books, plop down at a bookstore or library and read a few. I bet you'll find yourself laughing and trying to figure out what friends and family members have children of appropriate ages to give these books.

Very nice book for young children. My granddaughters, age 3 and 5 love all of MO WILLEMS books. "Don't let the Pigeon Drive the Bus" is probably their favorite. I highly recommend his books for tots!

I have to say that this book, so far, is my absolute favorite of the delightful adventures of Elephant and Piggie. Mo Willems is able to take simple words and short sentences and create a subtly hilarious story with all the nuances of anything "older". And this, this is such a hysterical idea. After observing some squirrels at play, Elephant and Piggie decide to surprise each other. One might think that such a conscious agreement will never pay off, but the results are surprising and funny. Fantastic job, Mr. Willems.

Just like the rest of the series: funny, cute, and perfect for the 6-8 age range. My 9 year old laughed at the story, but has gotten over a lot of the silliness of the humor to it. My 7 year old has read and re-read it a thousand times!

I purchased this book for my daughter this christmas as part of the Mo Willems box set available on Amazon. She is 5 and a half and absolutely loves this book, we read it quite often - almost every night! It always makes her laugh and she usually wants me to read it again or to read it to me.