Saturday, September 02, 2017

The Skunk

The Skunk. Mac Barnett. Illustrated by Patrick McDonnell. 2015. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: When I left my house there was a skunk on my doorstep. I kept very still. I did not want to startle him. But the skunk did not seem scared. Slowly and carefully, I backed away and started down the street. The skunk started right after me. We walked together a few blocks.

Premise/plot: A man is followed by a skunk everywhere he goes. If you are looking for a picture-book to illustrate the concept of stalking, I guess I have a book for you?!

My thoughts: Libraries are important. They allow you to take home books and try them out. There are books that you just wouldn't be willing to take a chance on if you had to pay to read them. Books like The Skunk. Books that beg the question, does a book have to mean anything at all to be enjoyable? Does a book have to have layers of meaning, a message, in order to be worth reading and sharing?

Did I like The Skunk by Mac Barnett?!?! I can't say one way or the other. I will say that I liked the end papers. The end papers at the start of the book are black and white. The end papers at the end of the book are black and white with a RED bow tie. This goes well with the story--for by the end of the story, there's been a turn around. As for the plot and characters, well, it is what it is.

Text: 3 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 7 out of 10

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

No comments: