MY DAD, MY HERO

Dads are often elevated to superhero status in the eyes of their kids, but Long turns this concept on its ear with hilarious results. Choosing a cartoon style and humor equally reminiscent of both Mo Willems and Garfield of comic-strip fame, Long first introduces an idealized dad on the cover, dressed in tight blue superhero garb complete with red cape and showcasing pumped-up muscles. But the inside story shows a dad lacking any real superpowers. Formatted in comic-book panels and illustrated with what appears to be the classic Ben-Day dots technique (think Roy Lichtenstein), this title aims at the funny bone. Captions narrate the action from the son’s droll point of view. The book opens with dad tripping over building blocks since he “cannot leap tall buildings in a single bound” and struggling to open a jar of pickles since he obviously “does not have super strength.” But after the son comes to the end of his amusing list of what dad is unable to do, readers can laugh equally hard at dad’s attempts to be the best father possible. Parents will chuckle with empathy at dad’s comedic, stretched-thin patience as he spends quality time with his son. All ends well with a big hug and no doubt that this dad is “really super…/ and definitely” a “hero.” (Picture book. 3-6)