Monday, June 29

Outstanding in the Rain

Outstanding in the Rain
Written and illustrated by Frank Viva

My rating: ★★

ISBN: 978-0316366274
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
Date of publication: April 14, 2015
Age: 3 - 6 years

Themes: birthday, Coney Island, carnival, word play

With several plays on words, a young boy excitedly spends his birthday at Coney Island. He enjoys ice cream, rides, and time on the beach—eating sandwiches on the sand which is there. When the night rain falls and night train calls, the little boy goes home—but not before getting a special treat.

On the cover, you'll notice it also says "a whole story with holes," and I take that both literally and figuratively. What Viva has done is create a story with strategic die-cuts to reveal different illustrations and word-plays. But, in this attempt, the story itself is lacking. It's jumpy (with his stretches in word play) and overly simple. I'm still confused about the boy shouting in her ear, but then it's her rear... I don't know. It's just not the best script. The illustrations are appealing, following a specific color scheme to create a vintage vibe, but aren't enough to save the book overall. This is not a favorite, but perhaps you'll get a chance to peruse it at some point and make your own opinion.

If you really want to, find it at your library or on Amazon

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