Publishers Weekly
06/10/2019
Cake—an endearing, layered slice sporting frosting, a cheery smile, and a cherry on top—and Monkey, wearing a red baseball cap, have a big box inside which, Monkey is confident, there is a cat. Cake looks forward to viewing the animal inside, but Monkey explains that the magical feline “disappears when I open the box.” Uncluttered illustrations by Tallec (Who What Where?) keep the focus on the characters as a confused Cake sits atop the box, eyes wide, as Monkey, now in a white lab coat, explains, “When I open the box, there is no cat. But when I close the box again, the cat is back in the box.” Readers will enjoy guessing along with Cake whether there really is a cat inside the box. (Or maybe a dinosaur, as Cake suggests.) In this funny, informative start to an early reader series, Daywalt (The Day the Crayons Quit) manages to explain the theory of Schrödinger’s Cat in brief. Whether or not kids connect the larger concepts, they’ll enjoy the invitations to ponder and imagine: “Just because you can’t see something, doesn’t mean it’s not there!” Publishing simultaneously: This Is My Fort! Ages 4–8. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
Praise for What Is Inside THIS Box? (Monkey and Cake):* "On the theory that it's never too early to start considering the deep questions... eventually, in easy-to-follow steps, [Cake] comes around to the only logical position: that whatever is or is not in the box is more a matter of belief than something provable." — Booklist, starred review"EXUBERANT, EXPRESSIVE AND FULL OF PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY... 4- to 8-year-olds will practice not only simple sentences but also a thought experiment... in a humorous coda, readers discover what seems to be the impossible truth." —- The Wall Street Journal"Daywalt (The Day the Crayons Quit) and Tallec (This Book Will Not Be Fun) have crafted a delightful, philosophical romp that will please and intrigue beginning readers.... Funny and thought-provoking. A definite purchase for beginning reader collections." —- School Library JournalPraise for The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors:* "Purely absurd, sidesplitting humor." — Booklist, starred review* "The sort of story that makes children love to read." — School Library Journal, starred reviewPraise for The Day the Crayons Quit:Amazon's 2013 Best Picture Book of the YearWinner of the E.B. White Read-Aloud Award* "These memorable personalities will leave readers glancing apprehensively at their own crayon boxes." — Publishers Weekly, starred review"Utterly original." — San Francisco Chronicle Praise for This Book Will Not Be Fun, illustrated by Olivier Tallec: * "Tallec's artwork... is impeccably turned out." — Publishers Weekly, starred review
School Library Journal
03/01/2019
K-Gr 2—This new series stars an impish little monkey and a personified slice of cake with a cherry on top of his head. Monkey and Cake are good friends. When Cake discovers Monkey sitting on top of a box, he asks what is inside. Monkey responds that a cat is in the box, but upon further questioning admits that the cat exists only when the box is closed. To up the ante, he also states that if Cake opens the box, the cat will disappear because the cat is MAGIC. Cake, as one would expect, is incredulous. They go back and forth and appear to be heading to a stalemate when Monkey advises Cake that he can think anything he wants about what is inside the box when it is closed. This invitation to imagination is priceless, and Cake soon declares that a dinosaur is inside. The whole Socratic debate begins anew with the two friends finally coming to an agreement that they will never know what is actually inside the box. Once they exit the scene, readers see a cat peeking out, and wouldn't you know it, when we turn the page, she is accompanied by a dinosaur. Daywalt (The Day the Crayons Quit) and Tallec (This Book Will Not Be Fun) have crafted a delightful, philosophical romp that will please and intrigue beginning readers. The end of the book contains several questions for children to ponder, which will prompt discussion and imaginative play. A nod to Schrödinger's cat is included for all quantum mechanics fans. VERDICT Funny and thought-provoking. A definite purchase for beginning reader collections.—Amy Nolan, St. Joseph Public Library, MI
Kirkus Reviews
2018-11-26
Anthropomorphic friends Monkey and Cake debate the mysterious contents of a cardboard box.
In a clear reference to Schrödinger, Monkey tells Cake that there's a cat inside the box—but, supposedly, the cat disappears when the box is opened. Cake questions Monkey's logic, wondering how they know there is a cat inside when the box is closed. Naturally, Monkey asks how Cake knows there is not a cat inside. Agreeing to disagree—and accepting the paradox—the pair leaves to get pie. The final pages set the matter straight once and for all. Taking a cue from the Elephant & Piggie series formula, the text consists entirely of dialogue. Speech bubbles are color-coded to easily match with characters (blue for Cake; yellow for Monkey). With a vocabulary of around 60 words, the dialogue offers plenty of repetition for emergent readers. Tallec's expressive, dark-pencil-and-acrylic illustrations are set against a white background. That the characters are a brown monkey with an upturned cap and a yellow-and-pink slice of cake with a coating of brown frosting as hair opens the relationship up to racial analysis. In one spread, a zoomed-in portrait of Cake even looks like a white human. The simultaneously publishing This Is MY Fort! recycles the formula into a lesson on the cruelty of exclusion (Cake makes a fort in which no monkeys are allowed). In both texts, endpapers offer open-ended questions to contextualize the story.
An entertaining thought experiment, but the characters are a bit too on-the-nose for pure comfort. (Early reader. 4-8)
