Blue Monster Wants It All!

PreS--Blue Monster gets easily bored with the things and people in this life. He wants brand-new things and people instead. This started when he was a baby and has continued throughout his childhood. When his grandma gives him some money, he decides to leave home and start over, hopefully find the elusive happiness he craves. His purchases start small with a hat, then move up to a sports car. Yet these new things still don't satisfy. Even the magnificent palace with a carnival and circus doesn't make him happy for long. Neither does his next stop to a tropical island. Eventually even the sun bothers him, so he gobbles it up. In the darkness, he misses his family and decides to return home realizing that everything he needed was already there. Text is simple but the plot is not subtle. The message is clearly about not being materialistic and appreciating the people in your life. However, the storytelling lacks the finesse of some other titles on this subject. Illustrations work well with the text. Not surprisingly, as the title reflects, there is a lot of blue in the illustrations. VERDICT Recommended as an additional purchase in libraries where patrons actively try to steer preschoolers away from a culture of materialism.--Robin Sofge, Prince William Public Library System, VA