This quirky little gem by the beloved Bernard Waber (Lyle, Lyle Crocodile; Lyle Walks the Dogs; Ask Me) was first published in 1971 and has lingered long in the hearts of its fans.
Waber imagines and sketches eight scenarios where children are interacting--including "Say Something Nice," "No Rain Again Today" and "My Diary"--to shine a light on the absurdity of human behavior, from contagious laughter to wishing away a perfectly beautiful day just to wear a new raincoat. In "Say Something Nice," a boy torments a girl by bringing up all sorts of "crawly, creepy things." "Lizards!" Arthur exclaims, with a mad gleam in his eye. "That's not nice," retorts Harriet. It escalates: "Spiders!" "Now you stop it!" When Harriet is called inside, she says, "This was fun. Let's do it again tomorrow," deflating and infuriating Arthur. In "My Diary," a girl tells her friend she never shows her diary to anyone. "Not even your mother?" "Not even my mother." "Not even your father?" "Not even my father." Then the inevitable: "May I look at it?" A comically elaborate bartering exchange ensues in which the friend gets to read the first word, "I," then the second, "think," until the diarist's juiciest secret is out. Her friend runs out the door to tell everybody. "COME BACK HERE!"
In this warm, funny and insightful collection of comedy sketches, nobody, not even Peter Perfect, is "perfick." Waber's realistically silly dialogue (in cartoon bubbles) and rough, inky drawings are just right for readers who are more in the mood for a flip-through than a dive-in book. --Karin Snelson, children's & YA editor, Shelf Awareness