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Summary
Summary
Not every child greets the new day with enthusiasm. Those who don't are called Grumples, and they must be dealt with carefully. Sing very softly, tickle one pinky toe, kiss the scrunched-up forehead. And then a big hug and a singing rhyme to see in the day. Even Grumples cannot resist.There are many going-to-bed books, but Good Morning, Grumple is a unique look at the celebration of morning. Manon Gauthier's endearing collage illustrations capture the love between a mother and child, even in cranky moments. Parents will find Victoria Allenby's droll story in verse to be a perfect accompaniment to the beginning of the day, and a gentle way to turn their own Grumples into children again.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Toddler-PreS-What to do with tots who don't like to wake up in the morning? Do you tiptoe carefully around them, or do you wake them up with a tickle and a song? Allenby and Gauthier address this very issue with a patient mother fox who knows just how to coax her own little "grumple" out of bed. Readers are urged to sing the short, simple rhymes louder and louder on each page as Mama Fox attempts to rouse her snoozing little one: "If it only mumbles 'NO,' Tickle just one pinky toe/And sing just a bit louder. Oh-Oh-Don't you pout./The sun is sweeping the shadows out." The story ends successfully, with a spread showing the little fox and his mama walking outside amid other presumably grumple friends, such as a bear and his cub. Gauthier's mixed-media and paper collage illustrations are quiet in tone, emphasizing that this is one fox who just wants to sleep. Tinges of taupe, cream, brown, and heather gray are shaded across the pages. The small size, soft padded cover, and sturdy card stock pages make this suitable for lap sharing. VERDICT Consider for medium to large picture book collections that serve a heavy toddler and preschool population.-Lisa Kropp, Lindenhurst Memorial Library, NY © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
This padded storybook with sturdy cardstock pages follows a mother's persistent efforts to get her sleepy "grumple" out of bed in the morning. Allenby's intermittently rhyming text traces the mother's escalating actions, which involve singing ever-louder: "If it only mumbles, 'No,'/ Tickle just one piggy toe/ And sing just a bit louder:/ Oh-Oh-Don't you pout./ The sun is sweeping the shadows out." Gauthier's naif collages sweetly emphasize the warmth between parent and child (they resemble a cross between a panda and a squirrel), even when the little one's eyes are squeezed tight in a desperate attempt to hang onto sleep a little longer. Ages 1-3. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
The grumple of the title is a small, white-furred animal with a bushy black tail and ears, dressed in pajamas.Its mom, a bigger version of the young animal, wearing a prim, flowered dress, tries to wake it with kisses and songs and to entice it outdoors to see the other animals. In their suburban woodland house, the grumple sleeps under a patchwork quilt, holding its fox doll. Addressing readers directly, the text advises: "If it's [sic] brow begins to furrow, / If it hides inside its burrow, / Then lean close and sing a little louder: / ShushShushThere's no rush / The sun is gold in the morning hush." That golden sun has a greenish cast in Gauthier's mixed-media collage illustrations, and the palette used throughout is mostly made of dull grays, greens, and browns. The cutout pieces (birds, a potted plant, the grumple's toy) incorporated into the illustrations have a playful, childlike look in contrast to the somber colors. When the mother finally persuades the child to leave its comfy bed, it magically changes from its pajamas into its overalls during a verse that spans a page turn and then goes out willingly to greet the day. His friends, including a bear parent and cub standing outside, are also dressed in human clothing, but the birds and fish scattered throughout the landscape are in their natural feathers and scales. The textual decision to place readers in the position of parent rather than child is a puzzling one. While the relationship between parent and child is a lovely, loving one, this book doesn't do much that isn't being done elsewhere. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Allenby and Gauthier's picture book opens on a scene likely familiar in many households: A grumple, a grumple is hard to awaken. It doesn't like noises. It hates being shaken. The grumple, a cranky bearlike creature, doesn't want to get out of bed to greet the day, so his mother tries some sweet tactics to nudge her little one out of bed. Allenby's lilting lines encourage singing progressively louder, tickling toes, and kissing foreheads to get little grumples out of bed, but it's the music that's the most affirming and powerful method for urging kiddos out from under their covers and off to enjoy the great outdoors and play with friends. Gauthier's naive-style collage illustrations, rendered in rough-cut shapes covered in thick paint and freewheeling scribbles, nicely complement Allenby's bouncy rhymes, particularly when contrasting the mother's singsongy cheerfulness with the grumple's rumpled, bleary-eyed appearance. Though the rhymes don't always scan, the sentiment is an ideal one for tykes who need an extra push to start their days.--Lock, Anita Copyright 2017 Booklist