May I Bring a Friend?

Laugh-out-loud funny story about a friend of the King and Queen who brings an unusual "friend" with him to tea, to lunch, to dinner. There's lots of repetition for the younger reader. Delightful.

A young boy brings a series of animal friends with him on his visits to the King and Queen in this rhyming tale from 1964, finding that his royal hosts are always gracious. Whether its a tall giraffe, a massive elephant, or a troupe of tigers, the royal couple react with sangfroid. Eventually they in turn are invited to tea, at the zoo...

The winner of the 1965 Caldecott Medal, May I Bring a Friend? is the third picture book I have read from author Beatrice Schenk de Regniers, and also the third from illustrator Beni Montresor, following upon his version of Hans Christian Andersen's The Nightingale, and his own The Witches of Venice. Given its status as a classic, it's one I have long been aware of, although I never read it as a child, show more nor even as an adult interested in children's books. I am glad to have that omission rectified, but cannot say the book left a terribly strong impression on me, for either the positive or negative. The vintage illustrations in yellow, orange, pink, and gray hues were interesting, although not a personal favorite. I think I prefer Montresor's work in The Witches of Venice. The story idea was fine, and the rhyming scheme was fun, but also sometimes a little frustrating. It's personal quirk, but I tend not to like verse in which rhyming word is not the last word of the sentence, as it makes the next little bit feel like a textual remainder, hanging off of the end of the sentence. I've seen it done well, but here I found the structure somewhat cumbersome. In any case, while I do appreciate the book, and am glad to know it now, I wouldn't say I strongly recommend it, save to those who enjoy somewhat surreal stories and vintage picture book art. show less

This lovely book is a story of a young boy invited by the King and Queen to tea, and then various other meals and occasions. He wants to bring a friend each time he goes to the castle. He brings a giraffe, a hypo, a team of energetic monkeys, an elephant, a team of lions, and a seal.

At the end, the room is filled with many large animals, and all have a wonderful, fun time.

This is a Caldecott Medal award-winning book. The illustrations are fun and set the tone for a lovely group of giggles from a small child, and adults as well!

In the book, May I bring a friend, a boy is invited to events hosted by the King and Queen. Each time he is asked to attend he wants to bring a friend, but all his friends are unexpected characters. However, the King and Queen are pleased with who he brings. The theme of this book displays the importance of friendship no matter who the person may be.

Critique: I enjoyed this book. It displays the friendship theme very well. The boy brings various animals over to the King and Queen and they tell the boy that whoever his friends are is a friend of theirs.
Craft Elements: During the read aloud of the book, you could ask predicting questions, such as: "who do you think the boy may be bringing now?" or "why do you think the Queen and King show more are so welcoming of his friends?"
For a reading and writing lesson with this book, you could ask the predicting questions while reading the story to get students thinking about the friendship theme, then after reading the book , have students write about the examples of friendship they heard within the story. show less

May I bring a Friend? is a cute, fun story of how a little boy is invited to various events by the King and Queen. He is invited for tea, breakfast, dinner, apple pie, and Halloween. After each royal invite, he asks if he may bring a friend, which portrays the wide-eyed innocence of a child. Children would no doubt get a kick out of who the little boy's friends are: elephants, giraffes, hippos, and lions, etc. As the animals get far more ridiculous as the story goes on, the royal couple stays just as gracious and accepting. On the last day of the week, the boy's friends want the King and Queen to visit them for tea at the zoo, which they happily oblige.
One thing I liked about this book is the song-like rhymes. It almost felt like I was show more singing quietly in my head as I was reading the story. It would be fun to read aloud to children because of that aspect. Although it won a Caldecott Medal, the illustrations didn't thrill me. However, one thing I did like about Montresor's work was how he only made the drawings of the boy and his animal friends colorful, thus emphasizing the wonder and imagination of the story.
I believe this book ultimately teaches an important lesson of the true meaning of friendship and accepting the differences among us, but in a light and playful manner any child would enjoy. show less

The king and queen invite our narrator to tea every day. Every day, our narrator asks if he can bring a friend, which always ends up being a zoo animal. At the end of the week, the king and queen join him and all their friends at the zoo for tea.

This is a cute story about a young boy who is invited by the King and Queen almost every day to their house for teas, breakfast, lunch, dinner, Halloween, and Apple Pie Friday. Each time the young boy brings a different animal. The King and Queen always welcome his friends as theirs. In the end, the little boy welcomes the King and Queen to come see him and his friends at the City Zoo for tea.
The illustrations of this book made me think deeper into the story. As you begin this book the pictures are white and plain but as soon as the little boy brings an animal to the King and Queen the pages are full of color. This happens each time he brings a new animal. I believe that the illustrator is trying to tell show us something beyond words. show more The King and Queen’s life are brightened and made better by the little boy and his animal and that is why they keep inviting them. This would tie into why only pictures of everyone together has color. The animal’s visits make their lives complete. While reading I find that the colorful pages made me more interested and I wanted to look at the details of the pictures more. I was able to notice more compared to what I noticed on the white pictures. show less