That’s Not Fair

PreS-Gr 4–There may be nothing cuter than a grumpy child. In this story, Yoshitake has created the very cutest kiddo, all coconut haircut and sparse-lined side-eyes. It’s a tour de force of frustration when this child decides to finally confront their dad about life’s great inequalities. Why must they go to bed early? Why mustn’t they eat sweets before bed? Why does Dad get to say “later” when they want something (that one in particular has one, um, explosive response). Readers will watch the parental gymnastics as the dad’s responses get sillier and sillier, until he turns it around on his kid, proving adulthood isn’t all it’s cracked up to be either. The simple illustrations just add to the charm in this book. Basic lines and the restricted color palette let the words and absurd answers shine. The only colored backgrounds happen in fantasy, heightening the already robust humor.