I Will Take a Nap!

Ah, Elephant and Piggie. It will be a sad day indeed when there isn't a new one to introduce to the kids at my pre-summer visits. Last year's offering, I will take a nap! won the approval of teachers and kids alike, all the way up to the fifth graders who raised the roof with their pig snores.

Elephant is feeling a bit cranky and decides it is time for a nap. Piggie thinks a nap sounds good too, but she doesn't quite grasp the technique....until suddenly she does. And then there is lots of loud snoring. And turnips. And floating. And...what??

Willems has created another masterful easy reader that's the perfect blend of art and story. It's got funny in several levels - I had to turn it back a few times to figure out the subtle visual cues show more for when the story shifts to a dreamscape.

Verdict: Elephant and Piggie should be a mainstay of any easy reader collection, along with Cat in the Hat, Frog and Toad, Fly Guy, and other classics. Everyone will have their favorites (mine are Watch me Throw the Ball and Can I Play Too?) and I predict that this one will end up on several read it again, absolute favorite lists.

ISBN: 9781484716304; Published 2015 by Hyperion; Purchased for the library show less

I love these books, they are so funny and so quick. This one is thebreak I needed from school reading and gave me the breath of fresh words I felt had to come soon. Elephant and Piggie always make me laugh.

Gift from the Kim family

Gerald the Elephant is self-aware enough to realize he's cranky and decide to rest...but then things take a strange turn. Delightfully absurd in the way that dreams can be.

This was the first Elephant & Piggie book I ever read, and I absolutely fell in love! I would love to see Elephant & Piggie stories performed as short skits for kids.

I. LOVE. NAPS! Napping is a HUGE part of my life! I can get through a couple of days in a row without a nap, if I *have* to.... but then, I start getting ultra-cranky and unproductive. Everyone in my family knows I need my naps and I'm happier if I get them. Elephant and Piggie show just how helpful naps can be--and how fun!

I enjoyed this book specifically for the language and illustrations. The language using onomatopoeias for sleeping and frustration sounds was enticing and vivid. The illustrations are messy line drawings with bold colors. The illustrations are simple but expressive in their body language and expressions. The message of this story is to take a nap when you are tired and cranky, it will make you feel better!

Brilliant & succinctly funny, as always, but this one gets surreal too.