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by Jeanne Willis & Tony Ross, illustrator
Andersen Press USA 2/6/2014
Age 4 to 8 32 pages
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“It was Boa’s birthday. It was going to be the best one ever. Or so he hoped. He invited his friends round. They would all bring him presents. Or would they?”
Opening
“It was Boa’s birthday.”
Review
Ah, birthdays. That one day of the year, that belongs only to you. Everyone who sees you will say, “Happy Birthday!” Throw a birthday party—the best way to celebrate your day—and everyone invited will bring you a present. Since they are all your friends, each one will know exactly what you like. It will be a grand day, indeed!
Today is Boa’s birthday and his mother is throwing him a birthday party. All of Boa’s friends are invited and each brings a present. Orangutan’s present is so big he lugs it on his back. Boa hopes against odds that the gift is not what he thinks it is. It is. What was Orangutan thinking? Boa’s mother said,
“It’s the thought that counts.”
An excited Monkey told Boa, “You’ll love it!” Boa doesn’t. Mom said,
“Third time lucky.”
Friend after friend forgets to think about Boa when getting him a birthday present. Now, one friend remains and mother and son are certain Dung Beetle brought a pile of, um, of . . . well, it isn’t a pile, but a big ball of . . ., um, must I say it? Dung Beetle? Okay? Good. Boa and his mother are right. Dung Beetle did bring a huge ball of, uh, yeah, that stuff. Poor Boa. I could say the nicely written, fun to read aloud, birthday story is the most fantastic birthday story ever written for a boa . . . if only the author had thought about Boa when she wrote in the presents. Kids will love the terrific illustrations, but the images also could have been fantastic . . . if the artist had remembered to think of Boa.
From Here on, Some, Not All, of this Review is Written in Jest – No Spoilers
Willis and Ross have collaborated on at least four other books. Those books must be fantastic else the publisher would not offer Boa’s birthday story. What went wrong? Do they not like Boa? Did they have a big fight and take it out on Boa? The awful mood made the writer so testy she had Dung Beetle leave his gift . . . then makes it rain. Dung’s ball stinks up Boa’s world as it slowly washes away until, only a small mound remains. The mound will forever leave reminders of Boa’s Bad Birthday.
Young kids will love Boa’s story. Parents can easily read Boa’s Bad Birthday in such a way as to make their children laugh. So may animal voices to use. A big orangutan, a funky monkey, a sleek jaguar, a happy, athletic sloth, and a, um, a . . . dirty dung beetle all offering an array of voices kids will love. Ah, but there is more. Willis and Ross made Boa’s already bleak world rain. Dung Beetle, being the last animal placed into the story, noticed the foul direction of Boa’s Bad Birthday and took to spying on Willis and Ross. What did Dung find out?
Dung has never liked the way creatives portray him. This time, Dung learns it’s his friend Boa who will be disappointed. Mad, the mischievous Dung decides to stop Willis and Ross’s total destruction of Boa’s birthday. “Let it rain,” said Dung to no one. Inside the ball of . . . that stuff Dung had to bring, he hides something. That something will turn Boa’s Bad Birthday into a fantastic birthday. Dung’s only disappointment is in his the inability to change the title. Still, I imagine—with a big smile—that the writer and artist are not happy Dung hijacked their story. Why? Because they once more captured the last word. The two countered by adding one more spread. I just don’t understand what a child has to do with Boa’s Bad Birthday?!
End of Jest
Boa’s Bad Birthday is cute. I love the alliterated title. Actually, I like the entire story. When Boa tries to use each gift, it will bring belly laughs from young children. I’ll admit Boa made me smile. Readers will understand Boa’s unhappiness and feel bad for him. Kids will also start to learn the importance of thinking before giving someone a gift. Parents should not mind reading Boa’s Bad Birthday multiple times. The story does not waste words. The illustrations add understanding to the text. Willis and Ross made a, dare I say, a “Fantastic” birthday story. Boa’s Bad Birthday contains an opportunity for children to empathize with Boa, laugh, and enjoy a terrific twist—Dung Beetle’s present. By next year, Boa’s friends will have learned the lesson of this story and Boa will have a fantastic birthday. One endnote, Mr. Tony Ross, considered one the world’s best illustrator, has illustrated a mind-boggling “over 800 books for young readers.”
BOA’S BAD BIRTHDAY. Text copyright © 2014 by Jeanne Willis. Illustrations copyright © 2014 by Tony Ross. Reproduce by permission of the distributing publisher, Lerner Publishing Group, Inc. Minneapolis, MN.
Buy Boa’s Bad Birthday at Amazon
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Learn more about Boa’s Bad Birthday HERE.
Meet the author, Jeanne Willis, at her website: http://www.jeannewillis.com/
Meet the illustrator, Tony Ross, at his short Lerner bio: https://www.lernerbooks.com/Pages/Author-Illustrator-Details.aspx?contactid=957
Find more books at the Andersen Press USA website: http://andersenpressusa.com/
an imprint of Andersen Press, Ltd.: http://www.andersenpress.co.uk/
distributed by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.: https://www.lernerbooks.com/
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ALSO BY JEANNE WILLIS & TONY ROSS
Flabby Cat and Slobby Dog
Fly, Chick, Fly!
Hippospotamus
The Pet Person
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CONGRATULATIONS TO
An Andersen Press Children’s author, Berlie Doherty, winner of the Carnegie Medal, is shortlist for The 2014 Stockport Children’s Book Awards, for her middle grade novel, The Company of Ghosts
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Filed under: 4stars, Children's Books, Favorites, Library Donated Books, Picture Book Tagged: Andersen Press Ltd, Andersen Press USA, birthday party, birthday party story, Boa, Boa’s Bad Birthday, children's book reviews, Jeanne Willis, Lerner Publishing Group Inc., picture book, Tony Ross, wildlife
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