by Jonathan Stutzman (Author) Heather Fox (Illustrator)
Meet Llama, the next great picture-book megastar, who has most definitely driven a bus and who loves tacos way more than you.
He also loves cake, and that's where our story begins.
On Monday, Llama discovers a pile of cake, which he promptly eats.
On Tuesday, Llama squeezes into his dancing pants, which he promptly rips.
The force of the rip creates a black hole (naturally).
By Friday, Llama will (indirectly) destroy the world.
In their debut picture book, author/illustrator team Jonathan Stutzman and Heather Fox introduce young readers to the comical, the studious, the oblivious Llama, a picture-book hero for the ages. So grab some cake and your dancing pants and prepare for Llama Destroys the World... because THE TIME FOR LLAMA IS NIGH!
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Married co-creators Stutzman and Fox open this outrageous story of planetary annihilation with a prediction: "On Friday, Llama will destroy the world." The seriously silly tale then details a single week's events, beginning on Monday with Llama's consumption of "more cake than any llama should ever eat." His indulgence is merely the "first mistake" in what turns out to be a domino effect of cascading errors: on Tuesday his dancing pants don't fit, but he squeezes into them anyway ("second mistake"), resulting in a "thunderous" rip that creates a black hole; on Wednesday and Thursday, he fails to warn of the world's "imminent doom"; and on Friday, as predicted, everything ends. With clean lines, uncluttered digital illustrations focus attention on the ungulate's day-to-day doings alongside incoming universal demise. Several pages of cyclonic chaos herald doomsday's arrival, a whirlwind of pizza, plants, and planets. It seems that all is lost, but then Saturday rolls around, and the world is just as it was--on the other side of the black hole. By Sunday, Llama, with innocent saucerlike eyes, has moved on to contemplating "more pie than any llama should ever eat." Dessert has never seemed so epic. Ages 4-8. (May)
Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.PreS-Gr 2--On Monday, goofy, quirky Llama discovers a pile of cake, which he promptly consumes. The next day, being full of cake, he struggles to put on his dancing pants. Eventually, he wiggles into the pants, but once he starts dancing the pants rip, causing a chain reaction of mistakes that the narrator informs readers will cause the end of the world by Friday. Playful and colorful, this quasi-doom-filled story is reminiscent of the humor of Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin or Unicorn Thinks He's Pretty Great by Bob Shea. The bold illustrations are a bit chaotic at times, but fitting to the story. Llama has wacky eyes and cannot say more than "I am Llama" and "dat" adding to his dopey charm. Adults will enjoy this read just as much as kids, being able to recognize the reference to "The Cha-Cha Slide" and nods to the scientific method. Full of rich vocabulary and alliteration, there is plenty of opportunity for kids to learn a thing or two from this lovable llama. Further, there is a positive message that even at seemingly the worst of times, such as the universe being sucked into a black hole, things usually work out on the other side. VERDICT A first joint effort from husband and wife team, this story will have readers chuckling again and again and coming back for more, just like Llama.--Kaitlin Malixi, Kensington Health Sciences Academy, Philadelphia
Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission."The goofy premise itself will elicit giggles, but it's innocently wide-eyed Llama who really sells the silliness of the story." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, Starred Review
Jonathan Stutzman is an award-winning filmmaker and a picture book author. He is the author of Llama Destroys the World, Don't Feed the Coos, Llama Unleashes the Alpacalypse and the Tiny T-Rex series. He received his masters at Temple University for Film & Digital Media. He lives in Lititz, Pennsylvania with his wife, the illustrator Heather Fox.
Heather Fox is an illustrator and graphic designer, creating art in pen and ink, digital, and gouache. She is the illustrator of Llama Destroys the World, Don't Feed the Coos and Llama Unleashes the Alpacalypse. Her art is filled with large quantities of quirk and dashes of whimsy, and she is very passionate about illustrating children's books and traveling the world. She lives in Lititz, Pennsylvania, with her husband, the writer Jonathan Stutzman.