My No No No Day

by Rebecca Patterson

Overview

Readers will say, "Yes, yes, yes!"

From the moment Bella wakes up, her day goes wrong. She hates her breakfast egg, she won't share, she has a hurting foot, her supper is too hot, and her bath is too cold. And then it's no, no, no to bedtime. But at last a yawn, a story, and a kiss from mother end the day, with the promise of a cheerful tomorrow.

Every parent, teacher, and caregiver will respond to this hilariously accurate portrait of one toddler with a case of the Terrible Twos!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101647257
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	04/26/2012
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	36 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	2 - 5 Years

About the Author

Rebecca Patterson lives in Cambridge, England. This is her first picture book to be published in the United States.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Praise for My No No No Day by Rebecca Patterson:

"Patterson's tale is visually festive even as Bella does her best to wring darkness from every moment." —Kirkus Reviews

"One is reminded of the words of Addison DeWitt in All About Eve: 'You're maudlin and full of self-pity. You're magnificent!'" —Publishers Weekly

"...a good one to tuck away for a similarly dreadful day or to use as discussion about bad days for those too little for Viorst's Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day." —BCCB

"...any youngster who has experienced similar days will readily relate to Bella and be comforted to know that sunnier days do lie ahead." —School Library Journal

Editorial Reviews

Bella is in a contrarian mood, to put it charitably. It starts when she wakes up to find her little brother, Bob, “crawling around my room and licking my jewelry,” and it’s downhill from there. Nothing goes right for Bella, and she’s more than willing to play her misery forward: after her cookie breaks during a play-date lunch, Bella insists that Bob and her friend Sasha “can’t be princesses!” But by bedtime, the exhausted narrator apologizes for her behavior. “We all have those days sometimes,” says her mother sagely. Patterson keeps her artwork simple—her line drawings have a pared-down feel, and most of the scenes share the same straight-on perspective. But by giving Bella the same disheveled mop of brown hair, glaring eyes, and gaping black hole for a mouth on virtually every page, and coupling these elements with a heedless, furious physicality, Patterson conveys a rage that readers should find appalling and thrilling at the same time. One is reminded of the words of Addison DeWitt in All About Eve: “You’re maudlin and full of self-pity. You’re magnificent!” Ages 3–5. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for My No No No Day by Rebecca Patterson:

"Patterson's tale is visually festive even as Bella does her best to wring darkness from every moment." —Kirkus Reviews

"One is reminded of the words of Addison DeWitt in All About Eve: 'You're maudlin and full of self-pity. You're magnificent!'" —Publishers Weekly

"...a good one to tuck away for a similarly dreadful day or to use as discussion about bad days for those too little for Viorst's Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day." —BCCB

"...any youngster who has experienced similar days will readily relate to Bella and be comforted to know that sunnier days do lie ahead." —School Library Journal

From the Publisher

PreS-K—From the moment young Bella opens her eyes, the day goes downhill. She chases her baby brother out of her room when she catches him eating her jewelry, has a problem with her breakfast egg, hates her shoes, and won't cooperate in the supermarket or at playgroup. Ballet is "tooo itchy," her peas too hot, her bath too cold, the toothpaste too minty, and, of course, going to bed is out of the question. Only after a story and cuddle does she calm down with Mom's reassurance, "We all have those days sometimes, but perhaps you will be more cheerful tomorrow!" And sure enough, she is. Patterson's watercolor cartoons are hilarious, depicting a crying, tantrum-throwing preschooler who flings her shoes in the air; tries to climb out of the shopping cart; and lies on the sidewalk, leg aloft, to win the sympathy of passersby because her foot hurts. On a page of sequential drawings, Bella is on the floor shouting, "No bed no no...bed" while her body goes through various contortions. All her protestations appear in extra-large black type throughout. And through it all, her mom is ever-patient, though she looks more bedraggled as the day wears on. Tetchy preschoolers are not new to picture books, but any youngster who has experienced similar days will readily relate to Bella and be comforted to know that sunnier days do lie ahead.—Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT

School Library Journal

Bella has a daylong (leading to a long-day) case of the grumps, and she shares them with each and all. Patterson's Bella is having one of those days, the kind that feels prehistoric, so it is best to act like a little cave girl, all bellowing, unmannered disgruntlement. But then, what is a little 21st-century girl to do when she wakes up in the morning to her baby brother licking her jewelry? (She left it on the floor; much of the charm of this book is that it is too weird to be made up.) Bella knows what to do: roll her eyes heavenward, fling her hands in the air and start hollering (her mouth resembling the cave she crawled out of that morning). The day just gets worse, with Bella getting more twisted by the moment, until bedtime, when her mother promises the next day will be better--which it is. Some days are rotten, and there is no telling why: It is a good lesson to learn that such days typically pass in the night, with some mysterious recalibration of our place in the world. Patterson's tale is visually festive even as Bella does her best to wring darkness from every moment. Its elemental nature will bring the point home to the youngest readers, though it does not replace the classic Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. (Picture book. 2-5)

Kirkus Reviews