Review by Booklist Review
In contrast to the bright pages of their popular Warning! Do Not Open This Book (2013), here the mood, along with the interior, is dark. And why not? A group of animals are stuck inside, someone having closed the book with them in it. Monkey, who bears a resemblance to Mr. Potato Head, is an almost hysterical narrator, and when he is most insistent, the font of his words increases and exclamation marks appear. Kids, who will love being in on the joke, will enjoy the illustrations that prove the damage a closed book creates: an alligator in a sling, a toucan with a bandaged beak, a much bruised banana. The collagelike illustrations, rendered digitally, have slightly blurred, soft hues, as if they have lost some crispness through rejection, and are set against black pages. Tension rises as those pages are turned, because they will eventually lead to . . . the closing of the book. Pair with Press Here, by Hervé Tullet (2013), for another opportunity for direct reader involvement, or Mo Willems' We Are in a Book! (2010) to meet another self-conscious narrator.--Ching, Edie Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In Warning: Do Not Open This Book! Lehrhaupt begged readers not to allow the animals in that book to escape; now, the animals plead with children to leave this book open, so they aren't trapped inside. Lehrhaupt's humor is sharper this time around, even edgy-a toucan and gator wear bandages, suggesting that shutting a book doesn't just trap characters, it injures them. Set against black backgrounds, Forsythe's digital artwork is equally attuned to the slightly sadistic mood. As book's end approaches, he delivers an extreme close-up of a dewy-eyed monkey making its desperate plea to readers: "We'll be good. Promise." Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Alexandra Penfold, Upstart Crow Literary. Illustrator's agent: Judith Hansen, Hansen Literary. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
The winning team behind Warning: Do Not Open This Book! follows up--contrarily--with this meta amusement featuring animals desperate to discourage readers from closing the book ("You turned another page! Don't you know what will happen?...We'll be trapped..."). The execution is impeccable, from the retro-style scold "Don't be a book closer" to the spry art on black pages reinforcing the mock-fatalistic mood. (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Lehrhaupt and Forsythe reverse an earlier premise, as the manic animals from Warning! Do Not Open This Book! (2013) return, now exhorting readers not to close the book. A monkey with a lantern illuminating ink-black pages rejoices: "You opened the book. We're saved!" Illustrating many of the terrible things that can happen when a book is closed, Forsythe produces an alligator in a cast, a toucan with a bandaged beak, and a frightened lemur peeking from a box. A battered banana is proffered as further evidence. Stalling readers from reaching the book's end, the narrator offers to change the story. "We'll write something with a hero and heroine. You'll like it. It will be a good story!" Amusingly, the earth-toned, digitally composed illustrations depict a gorilla hunkered over a typewriter; strewn about are drafts whose only word is "banana." More bribes (that banana, now half-eaten) naturally won't deter readers from turning the pages. The panicky monkey laments: "One more page and // THIS BOOK WILL BE // CLOSED!" This anguished word winds up on the back cover, with small-print instructions: "You can fix this. Flip it over and." The metafictive silliness will require the suspension of disbelief: if a closed book could hurt its characters, wouldn't a page turn inflict some minor injury? Joining a growing array of coy, self-referential works, this one's handsomely designed but a bit light on concept. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
