Sometimes kindness trumps scariness, when it comes to being an effective monster. That's the theme of Susan Hood's (Just Say Boo!) slyly engaging picture book.
"Spike was a monster. Or so he thought," the story begins, as Melissa Sweet (Balloons over Broadway) introduces a charming lime-green fellow with a baby-tooth smile and golden sunray-like spikes around his face. "Sí, I'm a monster all right!" says he. He practices swooshing his tail, shaking his spikes and baring his pointy teeth for hours. But Spike is small--"no bigger than a lily pad"--and can't seem to send his neighbors running in fright no matter how hard he tries. The animals around his pond call Spike "amigo," "adorable" and "my funny little fish face." Hood sprinkles Spanish words in just the right places, so children can figure out their meanings in context.
When a Gila monster slinks along the pond's edge, however, he sends the others running. All except Spike, who flaunts his monster moves, then grins at his performance. "Did I scare you?" asks Spike. It's directions, not courage, the Gila monster seeks, so Spike helps him on his way and earns hero status with the other pond creatures. "How did you tame the monster?" one asks. Spike just smiles. Photos in the back matter show how closely Sweet based her illustrations on the real animals, and a glossary translates the Spanish words. A charmer. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness