The Book That Almost Rhymed
by Omar Abed (Author) Hatem Aly (Illustrator)
Every great adventure needs a hero--or two! This playful take on storytelling and equity proves that two tellers can make a rhyming tale twice as nice.
What do you do with an interrupting sibling? Especially when she's stepping all over your story with wild ideas that don't. Even. Rhyme. Knights riding rockets? Dancing pirates? Who's ever heard of a fire-breathing armadillo?!
But when this big brother realizes his sister just might be improving his yarn--and doing it with an impressive surprise of her own--it's clear what you do with an interrupting sibling. You share the narrative! Turns out adventure is way more fun when you build it together, rhyme by daring rhyme.
"Sure to amuse." --Booklist (starred review)
"Riotous" --Kirkus
"Sprightly . . . Energetic." --Publishers Weekly
Locate at a Library Near You WorldCat is the world's largest library catalog, helping you find library materials online.
ALA/Booklist
Sure to amuse.
Kirkus
Readers will have a fine time [and] won't be averse to the verse.
Publishers Weekly
Abed's rhyming prowess propels this sprightly picture book that follows two siblings jointly composing an adventure. Employing simple couplets, a tan-skinned youth sets the scene: "The other day I wrote this book./ You won't believe how long it took." Enter brown-skinned sis, who disrupts the lines with jarring concluding phrases ("She ruined every rhyming verse, / so now my story sounds much--// MORE MAGNIFICENT!"). The narrator persists in trying to craft the conventional tale of a knight's daring search for treasure, but plot twists abound as the sister's alternatives insert a rocket, dancing pirates, and a fire-breathing armadillo. Just as the conceit seems clear, the suggestions become workable rhymes, and the siblings at last find a collaborative scheme. Aly's energetic digital renderings lean on graphics and sketched overlays to capture the duo's narrative exploits. Ages 3-7. (Mar.)
Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.
Review quotes
★ [Kids will] enjoy the silliness [and] the chaos that springs from each unexpected plot twist. . . . Vivid, expressive illustrations capture the characters' shifting emotions, while creating lively backdrops . . . Sure to amuse. —Booklist (starred review)
Riotous . . . Readers will appreciate these rollicking rhymes and laugh at the sister's out-there ideas. The comical digital illustrations will elicit chuckles. . . . Readers will have a fine time [and] won't be averse to the verse. —Kirkus
JUV039050 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Emotions & Feelings
JUV013070 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | Siblings
