OH, DADDY!
by Bob Shea & illustrated by Bob Shea
Thank goodness this hippo dad has his smart son to help him out! “[W]hen we’re late to Grandma’s, he asks... // ‘Is this how you get in the car?’ / ‘Come on, daddy!’ // ‘This is how you get in the car.’ See? Easy peasy, mac and cheesy!” Shea’s illustrations, however, tell a slightly different story. Dad anxiously looks at his watch, while son chases a butterfly. His absurd contortions as he tries to squeeze through the car window instantly draw his son, whose demonstration of the proper car-entering methodology ensures that they get to Grandma’s right on time. Scenario after scenario, the son saves his dad from his incompetence, right up to a final lesson in hugging. The blue hippos play out this drama against a Modernist, mixed-media backdrop with pleasing simplicity. A breath of fresh air. (Picture book. 3-5)