Up, Up, Down
Robert Munsch
Paperback
(Scholastic Canada, March 15, 2001)
In this zany story, Anna likes to climb on the refrigerator and her dresser and go "up, up, up" even though she falls down "ow ouch!" When her parents protest, she goes outside, where it's okay to climb, and climbs the highest tree she can find. Sitting in the top, she goads her parents to come after her; when they fall down trying, she relents and climbs down to wrap them in "enormous Band-Aids" and repeats what they've been telling her: "Be CAREFUL-don't CLIMB!" The humor is in the timing, the changing size and placement of the text, and the silliness of the plot. The watercolor illustrations are also over-the-top with ridiculously exaggerated points of view, comical-looking characters, and little jokes, such as a tiny treetop animal watching TV or stars flying off Daddy's injured bottom. This is sure to be a hit, especially with this team's fans.
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