Leonardo, the Terrible Monster

Few authors have the panache shown by Mo Willems in his introduction written on the book cover: "YOUR PAL MO WILLEMS PRESENTS" followed by the book title, but Mr. Willems has a well-placed confidence in his rapport with kids. Willems somehow grasps the soul of a toddler, and his writing and pictures appeal to this age group at a very deep level. His writing and pictures are so tuned in that he seems like a real friend; a friendly, somewhat goofy friend that you want to keep. Here he gets to an issue close to any youngster's heart--Monsters! KIds are afraid of the monster outside and (on another level) inside, and they frequent their nightmares and fantasy play. The always creative WIllems takes this fact and turns it inside out: What if there were a monster who was bad at what he did, who couldn't scare even the most timid "scaredy-cat?" Here, that cat is a "poor, unsuspecting" boy named Sam, shown in the lower lefthand corner of an otherwise blank 2-page spread). After woefully comparing himself to more scary monsters (which gives Willems a chance to draw a few), Leonardo vows to scare the "tuna salad" out of him. (This phrase is a surefire laugh magnet.) Leonardo succeeds in making Sam cry ("I did it! I've finally scared the tuna salad out of someone!"), but Sam makes other excuses for his tears in two-pages of crowded (and slightly difficult to read because of Willems' low contrast colors) testimony, including references to a stolen action figure, a stubbed toe, and a pooping cockatoo. Sam's list of bad times draws Leonardo's sympathy, and he decides that "instead of being a terrible monster, he would become a wonderful friend"--although he reserves the right to playfully scare Sam once in a while. In his famous "Pigeon" series, Willems uses a minimalist illustration style that plays casual and easy. Here, he apes the "monster" designs of Maurice Sendak ("Where the WIld Things Are") either as homage or because he couldn't do better. I'll call it a tribute, because Willems also draws a monster that looks like it came out of "Yellow Submarine." He's also a master at typeface, putting catch phrases that require emphasis (like "tuna salad") in contrasting font colors. In a side joke that adults will appreciate as much as kids, Willems draws "Tony," the monster with "1,642 teeth" and then asterisks it: "*NOTE: NOT ALL TEETH SHOWN." The humor is about as sophisticated as it gets with toddlers (one step up might be the great "Mr. Lunch" series). This is a surprisingly effective and touching story.

This book is about Leonardo, the terrible monster. He thinks that he is so terrible because he can not scare anyone like the other monsters. He doesn't have lots of sharp teeth and he isn't really big or weird looking to scare people. He decides to find a scared little boy and scare him even more to prove himself as an acceptable monster. Leonardo finds Sam. He scares Sam so badly that Sam started to cry. Sam explains to the monster why he has had an awful day: because his toy was broken by his big brother and he stubbed his toe and a bird pooped on his head, and anything else bad you could imagine. Then Leonardo starts feeling sad that he made Sam's day even worse, so he "made a very big decision." (I love that line!) He decided that he would no longer try to be a terrible monster, but he would become a wonderful friend instead. Mo Willems has such a charm about his books! He doesn't use that many words in his text, so the words that he does use are really important and carefully chosen. I love the colors used in his illustrations in this story. They are soft sage greens, lilacs, pinks, yellows, and browns. It looks as though he has used pen and ink and possible paint of some sort. He highlights different words of the text in different colors to place emphasis on certain words. Willems also uses a lot of blank space (it is not white space because it's colored). His use of the blank space helps to create a sense of movement in the story. The reader can see the progression of the movements of the characters as they turn the pages. When Sam is telling Leonardo all the reasons why he crying, the text is thick and bold and covers the entire two page spread. I think this does a great job at allowing the reader to really hear the child as he is upset and telling everything that has gone wrong that day. Another quality picture book by Mo Willems!

(I have to write reviews for a class I'm in so here's mine for this book): Poor Leonardo is terrible at being a monster. He doesn't have 1,642 teeth like Tony. He isn't big like Eleanor. And he isn't `just plain weird' like Hector. Despite his best efforts, Leonardo cannot scare anyone and it makes him very sad. Hope returns to Leonardo after he comes up with the idea of trying to scare the most scaredy-cat kid in the whole world, Sam. However, Sam has other things on his mind and after his latest failed attempt, Leonardo makes a big decision that will impact his monster-ness. The drawings in Mo Willems' simply-illustrated picture book do wonders to effect the mood and emotion of the characters and the feel of the story. Though each page contains a simple line of text, the pictures tell the real story. The use of space and perspective allows the audience to feel as small and defeated as Leonardo as he struggles through all of his failed attempts at being ferocious. Children will love following Leonardo's attempts at being scary and adults will root for Leonardo and appreciate his final decision. The book is said to be for audiences `as young as 3 and as old as 36' but the feel created by Willems' gentle illustrations and simple text will guarantee to adore audiences well into their golden years.

I'm a big, big fan of Mo Willems' last book, "Knuffle Bunny," and was equally delighted by this new picture book about a little monster named Leonardo who wants to be scary, but only seems cute. Leonardo decides to pick on Sam, a boy he determines is the most scaredy-cat kid in all the world, but after he succeeds in making Sam cry, Leonardo realizes he may have actually hurt the boy's feelings, and tries to make amends. A gentle parable about playground cruelty, this is also a beautifully laid-out book, with a bold, expansive use of empty space and clear, easily understood imagery. The serious emotional message is underplayed in favor of a playful tone, and will delight small children... You'll have a lot of fun trading "BOOS" with your kid after each reading. I enjoyed this one a lot, and it's frequently requested at storytime.

I'm visiting my grandchildren, Louis (5) and Katherine (2). I brought Leonardo along as a gift. In the three days since I arrived, we've read it at least 10 times. We love Leonardo, we love Sam, and we love this book!