I received this book at no cost from the publisher
This Is Not That Kind of Book by Christopher Healy, Ben Mantle ISBN: 0525580298
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers on October 15, 2019
Pages: 32
Goodreads
This is a book that answers all the kids who have ever posed the question What kind of book is it?
This clever alphabet book... Wait, that's not right. This original fairy tale... Nope. Mystery? Joke book? Superhero story? Pirate adventure? This delightful mash-up features every kind of character found in the picture-book universe--all in one book. Just when the reader is convinced the story is going in one direction, it spins off in another.
Ever-changing illustrations keep pace with the rapid reversals, and the setting shifts with nearly every turn of the page. Truly inventive, here's a picture book that can be anything you want it to be!
This clever alphabet book… Wait, that’s not right. This original fairy tale… Nope. Mystery? Joke book? Superhero story? Pirate adventure? This delightful mash-up features every kind of character found in the picture-book universe–all in one book. Just when the reader is convinced the story is going in one direction, it spins off in another. Ever-changing illustrations keep pace with the rapid reversals, and the setting shifts with nearly every turn of the page. Truly inventive, here’s a picture book that can be anything you want it to be!
CHRISTOPHER HEALY held numerous other jobs before becoming a children’s book author, including actor, ad copywriter, toy-store display designer, fact-checker, dishwasher, journalist, costume maker, video-game reviewer, and haunted-house zombie (though not in that order). He is the author of the popular Hero’s Guide series, and lives in New Jersey with his wife, their two children, and a dog named Duncan.
BEN MANTLE has most recently been working as a children’s book illustrator from his shared studio in Brighton, England. He also produces screen prints and digital artwork for exhibitions. Ben has illustrated numerous picture books, including the popular books Five Little Pumpkins and There Was an Old Dragon Who Swallowed a Knight.
REVIEW
This is the perfect book for children that are moving on from easy to read simple picture books and want to read something unique and fun. Each page is different from the last and I am sure that the span of literary genres will appeal to parents tired of rhyming and more of the same. This is just adorable and it is so much fun to read out loud. This is perfect to challenge readers by easily identifying unusual words that are matched with recognized images that most kids will know and related to.
The story starts out like a normal alphabet book but then quickly changes pace and moves into a fairy tale complete with Little Red Riding Hood who then is introduced to a Robot which brings us to science fiction. The characters move on to school where they are greeted by a Hedgehog teacher and fantasy. The teacher moves them on to a TALKING BANANA which brings in humor and then a detective helps out by introducing mystery! To solve the mystery, a Pirate brings in tension and helps them to escape into the pages of a book, bringing everything full circle.
