THERE'S A YETI IN MY TUMMY

A boy goes about his day with a very enthusiastic yeti in Rusu’s picture book.

The story opens with narrator Matthew feeling that he has a “yeti in [his] TUMMY!” The yeti has a tendency to roam around and cause mischief; no one can see the imaginary creature, but Matthew can feel his presence in his own stomping feet, his tickly, sneezy nose, and even his backside during a game of kickball. His classmates pretend that they have yetis inside them, too, causing kickball mayhem. Matthew’s teacher says that her own yeti is calm and helps her feel brave. At bedtime, Matthew’s yeti isn’t sleepy, so Matthew decides to sneak downstairs and scare his TV–watching parents. Matthew’s mother sits with him (and his yeti) to talk about how the yeti’s getting “too silly,” noting that the boy can use the yeti’s strength to have courage and “do good things.” Morón’s illustrations are diverse and very expressive; Matthew and his family have brown skin, a Black teacher has a natural hairstyle, and other characters have various skin tones. Young readers will gradually understand the correlation of the appearance of the yeti in Matthew’s thoughts and how the boy is feeling in the moment; the creature serves as an effective metaphor for impulse control as well as bravery.

A funny, rhyming story about what makes youngsters brave andsilly.