Pierre: A Cautionary Tale in Five Chapters and a Prologue

Now in a board book! And in my opinion, as weird and confusing as ever. I guess I've never met a child who didn't care. Sendak is hit & miss with me. I love Rosie, and Max, and the little white dog, and Chicken Soup with Rice, and the art collaborations with [a:Ruth Krauss|12961|Ruth Krauss|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1495054958p2/12961.jpg]... but many others just bounce off no matter how often I try.

Coming back to this down the years, it seems to me like something your cutesy indie webcomic-drawing friend would produce, in the good way. Pierre is one of children's literature's greatest, snottiest little bastards.

This little book by Maurice Sendak is about a naughty little boy whose favorite words are "I don't care!" His whiny apathy leads him to be swallowed by a lion while his parents are in town. Pierre is, of course, freed from the lion, and afterwards he does care about his life and about making decisions. While this book is very fantastical and borders on violence, the theme of Sendak's story is the importance of caring and taking control of one's own decisions. It is a little much for younger children to swallow and they may be frightened of the lion, but perhaps for second graders and a little older it would be a fun book to read while teaching them about self-importance and self-esteem. I really enjoyed this book as a child and even show more now, and I think Sendak's illustrations are funny and engaging. show less

This "cautionary tale" is about a young boy who responds "I don't care" to every statement or question directed his way, ultimately leading to him being swallowed up by a lion. Sendak warns that children shouldn't use "I don't care" as a response, which I suppose is a valid point although I haven't come across many children who are that indifferent all the time. The illustrations use a fairly muted palette of blues and yellows, which makes for an interesting and pleasing aesthetic effect.

This a tale of a quarrelsome lad named Pierre who haughtily responded to every statement of question with "I don't care."

Until one day he responded to the Lion that he did not care if the Lion ate him. After a rescue from the stomach of the lion, Pierre indeed began to care.

The moral of the story...you may not appreciate life until you run the risk of losing it.

Pierre, another of Sendak's naughty protagonists, responds to everything his parents say to him with, "I don't care." This all changes after he tries those words out on a lion, who proceeds to eat him. Only after he is shaken out of the lion, does he begin to care. A cautionary tale about attitude, manners and character development for the very youngest readers. Especially if they want to read a 'chapter book' like their older siblings.

This book is the one to share with toddlers who are going through the terrible two's/threes phase. Pierre spends all his time telling the world he doesn't care. Until one day a lion makes it clear what happens to boys who don't care.