The Chocolate-Covered-Cookie Tantrum (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition)

Deborah Blumenthal is a health-and-fitness writer living in Houston, Texas. This is her third book for Clarion.

PreSchool-K?A slice-of-life picture book that acknowledges the intense emotions of a toddler. On the way home from the park, Sophie spots another child eating a chocolate-covered cookie. "I want a cookie," she says pointing a stubby finger, "I want that cookie." Despite her mother's calm and logical responses, Sophie becomes more and more upset, finally launching into a tantrum that involves kicking, screaming, tears, and a face as "hot as a pepper." When the moment passes, an exhausted Sophie takes a nap and calmly eats her supper. The straightforward and simply worded text uses repetition to express the child's fury, frustration, and helplessness. As the little girl's emotions build to a crescendo, the language becomes more and more staccato, quickly returning to normal after the storm passes. The average-quality illustrations, painted with brightly colored acrylics, echo Sophie's emotional state, as pleasant images of the park turn into scenes of alienation and anger. One scene places her at the top of an erupting volcano, while another shows a red-hot pepper, surrounded by pairs of kicking feet. Both words and pictures capture the sudden and surprising intensity of the tantrum, and the reassuring comfort of the recovery. This title can be useful as bibliotherapy for children still too young for Aliki's Feelings (Greenwillow, 1984).?Joy Fleishhacker, New York Public Library
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.