The Little Bit Scary People

A wonderful way to defy stereotypes and it does so in a way that's through a child's eyes and not at all pedantic. A little girl describes the people in her life who are a "litte bit scary" such as the school principal or a punk-rock teen, and reimagines them in positive and unexpected ways. Next time your neighborhood gangbanger comes slinking into the library, reimagine him as doting on his beloved grandmother.

Back in the late 80's and early 90's, Michael Thaler hinted at the fact that you can't judge a person by their appearance in books like [b:The Librarian from the Black Lagoon|111002|The Librarian from the Black Lagoon|Mike Thaler|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1223645477s/111002.jpg|106925] and [b:The Teacher from the Black Lagoon|948638|The Teacher from the Black Lagoon|Mike Thaler|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179717057s/948638.jpg|933563]. Carmen Deedy tried as well with her book [b:the library dragon|77563|Legends II|Robert Silverberg|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170900273s/77563.jpg|5215160] which showed that all librarians are as mean and rigid as some are made out to believe.

BUT to my knowledge, no one has yet captured show more a child's true thoughts about people who are "a little bit scary" until Emily Jenkins. Children have lots of fears, but a big one, right up there with "the dark", is strangers or people who are different than themselves. The Little Bit Scary People tackles that topic head one with sometimes rather humorous results. show less

I really liked this one -- great book to show that people you don't know, or aren't like you, still do normal and delightful things. Non-gender stereotyped and ethnically diverse characters -- yaay.

I really liked this one -- great book to show that people you don't know, or aren't like you, still do normal and delightful things. Non-gender stereotyped and ethnically diverse characters -- yaay.

A great picture book for fraidy cats or any shy child -- the little bit scary people includes the school nurse and the kid who is kicking a can outside the candy store. Little bit scary turns out to mean "intimidating" or "different" and the book reinforces that each of these people does something else in their private life which you can understand or relate to. The redheaded protagonist is imaginative and sympathetic and the drawings are modern yet fanciful.

This is a wonderful picture book about how people who look different can be scary. It points out that if we knew more about that person they might not seem scary at all. Deals with everything from the Goth kid to the school principal to the lunch lady!

I liked the pattern that this story followed with someone doing something strange or aggressive and then showing the softer side that they kept hidden away originally. It was nicely presented.