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Baby Trolls Get a Bad Rap (Underrated Babies Book 1) by Justine Avery and Daria Yudina (view source)
Revision as of 10:50, 7 August 2020
, 10:50, 7 August 2020no edit summary
''Baby Trolls Get a Bad Rap'' will teach its young readers the valuable skill of persuasive language: ask nicely, don't demand and stamp your feet when what you want isn't immediately forthcoming. Explain yourself. Show yourself. Be polite and cheerful. When Horatio, Grizelda and Saul suddenly appear on the first page, shouting ''SIGN OUR PETITION!'', it's impactful. Young readers have no idea what petition they're being asked to sign and are likely to say, ''No! Why should I?''. But, by the end, they'll be raring to get out their pencils and put their name after Santa Claus's in the clever final panel, which is an illustration of the petition itself. And a good conversation can be had about why. Good picture books incite such conversations between parent and child and ''Baby Trolls Get a Bad Rap'' succeeds brilliantly in this criterion.
The underlying message, of course, is that you shouldn't prejudge anyone, troll or otherwise, and that everyone's voice should be heard. And that very often, people you think might be scary because you don't know anyone like them turn turns out to be not scary at all when you ''do'' get to know them. It's a book against ignorance and othering.
Those are the serious bits! But the fun bits are also there. This short little picture book with its minimal text packs so much characterisation into its three baby trolls, it's an utter joy. Horatio, the biggest, is clever and earnest but can be a little bit pompous. He uses some quite long words in a slightly self-conscious way. Saul is the naughty-but-nice one who quite likes the idea of being a little bit scary when he grows up to be a big troll and has some hilarious put-downs. Grizelda, the littlest, considers herself to be more princess than troll and loves attention. Daria Yudina's energetic, lively illustrations capture Avery's characters exactly and add lovely detail - Horatio squinting behind his glasses, Saul squggly mouth squiggly mouth when he makes his best scary face (not scary!), Grizelda's tongue poking out as she gazes at her ice cream.
''Baby Trolls Get a Bad Rap'' is fun to read, teaches children new language skills, makes important points about listening to every voice, and introduces three fabulous characters for children to make connections with. What more could you want?
When they get a bit older and are reading for themselves, and if they still love trolls, they'll enjoy the storytelling and magic in [[Troll Blood by Katherine Langrish]]. You might also enjoy [[You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant]].
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