MY SIDE OF THE CAR

An endearing father-daughter episode based on family history. Lots of family stories are of interest only to those who lived them. But if your father just happens to be a brilliant illustrator (and if you’re a darned good writer yourself) you might find that sharing a childhood memory is a great way to create an engaging, imaginative and humorous picture book. Sadie, the narrator, briefly describes her family's previously fruitless efforts to visit the zoo. There's the time her mom tripped and broke her foot on the way to the car (they wound up at the hospital) and the time her grandparents visited unexpectedly (they wound up at the museum). Small wonder, then, that she's not going to let a little bad weather stand in her way. When Sadie's patient papa points out that it's started to drizzle, then rain in earnest, Sadie repeatedly insists it's not raining on her side. The deadpan tone of the text heightens the humor of the father-daughter dialogue, while the elder Feiffer's antic illustrations play up the ridiculousness of Sadie's increasingly firm (and utterly unfounded) description of the landscape. Forced at last to admit that it's pouring buckets, Sadie generously decides that she doesn't want her dad to get wet and gives in. Luckily things start to look up partway home and the happy ending features the beginning of their zoo adventure. Utterly charming. (Picture book. 5-8)