Double-Up Day!

Written by Kari-Lynn Winters

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Pajama Press

978-1-77278-361-2

32 pp.

Ages 3–7

May 2026 

 

What's Double-Up Day? It's a new tradition that Brandon's big brother wants to start when he realizes all the good things Brandon gets on his birthday. If they double up the goodies and the play, there's more for everyone, with a math lesson on addition to add to the fun.

From Double-Up Day!, written by Kari-Lynn Winters, illustrated by Dave Whamond

When he sees his little brother getting a large birthday gift, Brandon's older brother wonders why there's one for Brandon "...and none for me?" (pg. 5). So, he suggests Double-Up Day, a day on which they double up everything. Thus, one cake becomes 1+1 cakes which makes, "Two berry-licious, yummy-in-my-tummy, birthday cakes to decorate!" (pg. 9) (Note that all numerical terms are bolded in red to emphasize the math going on.)

From Double-Up Day!, written by Kari-Lynn Winters, illustrated by Dave Whamond

After the cakes, there is a doubling-up of party hats, tails on the pin-the-donkey game, popsicles, balloons, balls, running of laps, swinging in the playground, bounces on a trampoline, and finally naptime stories. (Naps seem a requirement for a very young Brandon and a very tired Grandpa.) With each new activity, young readers will learn how to double up numbers one through ten and enjoy some rhyming onomatopoeia as things are wiggly-jiggly, bouncy-wouncy, uppy-puppy, and more.

From Double-Up Day!, written by Kari-Lynn Winters, illustrated by Dave Whamond

The day may end with only one book and a special aunt but the learning that happened through the sharing of Brandon's special day will not be forgotten by readers.
 

Kari-Lynn Winters has used her picture books to bring joy and play to learning, whether it's about the arts (Hungry for the Arts: Poems to Chomp On, 2022), engineering (Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On, 2024) or science (Hungry for Science: Poems to Crunch On, 2015), all written with Lori Sherritt-Fleming and illustrated by Peggy Collins or Dave Whamond. Or Kari-Lynn Winters just wants us to have fun, and she gives us stories that make us smile and laugh and still consider what's happening in the story. (For example, What If I'm Not a Cat?, illustrated by Kelly Collier, from 2023, comes to mind.) Or she tells stories that are sensitive in their messaging and perceptive in their subjects like French Toast (illustrated by François Thisdale from 2016). Whatever Kari-Lynn Winters decides to write becomes a story that will matter. Double-Up Day! matters because of its teaching and the learning that will happen, but it's its delivery that matters. The story is festive and upbeat, and, though I was annoyed with Brandon's nameless big brother who selfishly decides to make himself part of a birthday not his own—I'm personally triggered by narcissists who want all attention on them no matter the event—Kari-Lynn Winters ensures that he redeems himself by helping Brandon have more fun than he would have had by himself.

 

Kari-Lynn Winters may give the fun in her playful words, but Dave Whamond gives us it in the silliness of his illustrations. Dave Whamond has written and illustrated his own books (e. g., Oddrey, 2012; Rosie's Glasses, 2018; Hugo's Haunted Handbook, 2024) as well as for those of others, most notably Robert Munsch (e. g., School Rules!, 2020; Think Big!, 2021). But he always brings the silliness of children at play and the frivolity of life. Whether it's a trampolining dog, dripping popsicles, watchful-eyed squirrels, bunny slippers, or kids finding fun in familiar activities, Dave Whamond lets us know that everyone is having a jolly good time.

From Double-Up Day!, written by Kari-Lynn Winters, illustrated by Dave Whamond

If I was still teaching and I knew little ones would miss celebrating their summer birthdays with their school friends, Double-Up Day! would be a great story to read to celebrate double (or even triple) birthdays before the end of the school year. Kids could enjoy a great book, learn about doubling and addition, and having a birthday celebration all in one go. Sounds like a win + win = double win for everyone!

Aaron's Hair (rev. ed.)

Written by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Scholastic Canada

978-1-0397-0906-5

32 pp.

Ages 3-8

January 2025 

 

It's been 25 years since Robert Munsch first told the story of Aaron's runaway hair. Originally illustrated by Alan and Lea Daniel, Aaron's Hair is a timeless story of hating your hair–don't we all have bad hair days?–but like classic Munsch, the story takes an unexpected turn when Aaron's hair takes off to find an appreciative host. Now illustrated with the wacky art of Dave Whamond, Aaron's Hair has a new and updated sparkle of absurdity. 

From Aaron's Hair (rev. ed.), written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

Aaron is proud to have long hair like his dad but when his hair becomes uncooperative, Aaron shouts out that he hates it. Well, that hurts the hair's feelings, and it runs away, leaving Aaron bald. And so, the chase begins.

 

From Aaron's Hair (rev. ed.), written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

As Aaron's hair flits from the baby's head to the street, attaching itself first to a woman's tummy and then to man's behind, Aaron gives chase. The star-shaped hair continues to cause mayhem, especially when it covers a traffic policeman's face, resulting in a traffic jam of epic proportions. There are still a few more stops before both Aaron and his hair find their way back to each other and even find a way forward.

 

The absurdity of Robert Munsch's stories has always been in that germ of reality, here in the conflict between hair and bearer of said hair. It's that struggle to style it, tame it, keep it out of food, and more. But Robert Munsch makes that struggle into a crazy action adventure that will have kids rolling on the floor with laughter. With Dave Whamond's illustrations, the wackiness is heightened, giving more laughs as Aaron's hair misbehaves, as the boy panics at the potential for long-term baldness, and as the community becomes involved in the ensuing chaos. Follow the escape, the pursuit, and the confusion through expressive faces, topsy-turvy scenes, and the unexpected details including Dave Whamond's ubiquitous squirrel, bunny and bird from his popular character in his Reality Check syndicated comic.

From Aaron's Hair (rev. ed.), written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

Next time you're having a bad hair day, think about Aaron and his unruly hair, and thank goodness for an occasion split end, frizz or cowlick that reassures that you've still got hair on your head. After all, the alternative can be outrageously chaotic,  even if uproariously funny.

Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On

Written by Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Fitzhenry & Whiteside

978-1-554556427

32 pp.

Ages 5-8

December 2024

 

For teachers and parents who love a blend of everything, the Hungry For series by Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming will always fit the bill. A blend of non-fiction STEM with poetry and humour and fabulous illustrations, Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On is their fourth and latest addition to the series, introducing a variety of engineering concepts in bite-size poems that educate and entertain.

From Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On by Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming, illustrated by Dave Whamond

In a series of eleven poems, some short and others than span several pages, Kari-Lynn Winter and Lori Sherritt-Fleming delve into all manner of the physical sciences. From the concept of fasteners ("Handy Luke Randy's Fit-It-Up Fasteners") to get power from the sun and wind ("Run by the Sun" and "Wind Tower Power"), and to the ubiquitous "Egg Drop" challenge, they cover a full range of engineering concepts. There's lots to learn about simple machines and forces at work and the mechanics of movement of different materials. Better yet, their poems show kids having fun trying things out, making things move, experimenting and observing, and persevering in their learning. I particularly enjoyed the poem "Clear As Mud?" which shows two children working at filtering muddy water to make it potable, and ends with....

It worked a little, I must admit...

I'll try some more. I will not quit!

From Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On by Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming, illustrated by Dave Whamond

The concepts that Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming include, many described in the appended glossary, are a great sampler for the physical sciences and a great introduction for younger readers. Hungry for Engineering would be a fabulous hook to start a lesson or two or even a follow-up for children to identify all the concepts they've already learned. Best of all, the poems are funny rhymes with a host of wacky characters from Scary Miss Mary and Luke Randy to Liam O'Leary the inventor and Marianne the girl who uses wind power to blast her to Japan. And the forms these poems take are everything from a limerick and familiar quatrains, to visual poems, in which some words demonstrate their meanings like fall, drop, and downward. 

There's learning that will happen and rhyming joy with the read-aloud but Dave Whamond's illustrations take the poems from entertaining to vigorously animated. There are Godzilla-like creatures munching skyscrapers, a dragon using a stapler, several ingenious Rube Goldberg machines, and a fully-occupied bug hotel created of a variety of materials. His art is colourful and wacky, inclusive and bustling. There's much to see in the details, and the learning will go beyond the text into the illustrations as they search for simple machines and fasteners and more.

From Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On by Kari-Lynn Winters and Lori Sherritt-Fleming, illustrated by Dave Whamond

Whether your little ones are building or taking apart, investigating or observing, Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On will inspire them to see the magnitude of engineering in their lives and in the world around them. They'll be learning while they're laughing, and rhyming their way through the nuts and bolts of engineering, courtesy of Kari-Lynn Winters, Lori Sherritt-Fleming and Dave Whamond.

 

 • • • • • • •

 

Hungry for Math: Poems to Munch On (2015)

 Hungry for Science: Poems to Crunch On (2018)

Hungry for the Arts: Poems to Chomp On (2022)

Hungry for Engineering: Poems to Gnaw On (2024)

 

Hugo's Haunted Handbook

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-587-7

32 pp.

Ages 5-8

Releases March 15 2024

 

Who better to help others get rid of their unwanted ghosts than Hugo? After all, he got rid of his ghost. Or did he?

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Hugo's first instruction is to ensure that you really have a ghost, so he has devised three simple experiments. The first involves cookie crumbs, the next uses a camera, and finally there's locating any ectoplasm.  (He also notes that the pros use EMF Readers.)

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

So, if you have a ghost, the next step is to learn about them. Did you know that they watch us, have bad days, get static cling, and love practical jokes?

Darn! They short-sheeted me again! You guys...

The problem for Hugo isn't that ghosts are necessarily scary; they are just annoying. (No one wants to be interrupted in the bathroom!) So, Hugo has 5 useful tips that the reader can use to get rid of their ghost forever.

With Tip #1, to yell "Bam shicka lam shicka boom boom bam" three times, Hugo gets to work. Trouble is that the ghost doesn't seem to respond as Hugo wishes.

Yep, still here.

Now what? Hugo tries several other fixes, all things that kids can do. (Okay, cooking up the Ghoul Begone potion might be tricky if you can't get your hands on maggot snot or aardvark poop, though raisins always seem to be plentiful when you're a kid.)

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Sadly, Hugo's ghost gets his feelings hurt with Hugo's claims about the supernatural being. Will their relationship ever be the same? Or should it?

Hugo is so earnest in his endeavours that it's hard not to take him seriously. But, with his quirky suggestions, coupled with an uncooperative ghost who is always peeking out, listening, commenting, and just being present, Hugo doesn't quite cut it as an aficionado at ghost elimination. What's worse is that instead of getting rid of his ghost, Hugo has offended the little guy who thought they were friends. By turning the tables on Hugo and his ghost, author-illustrator Dave Whamond just adds another dimension to an already amusing interaction, taking Hugo's Haunted Handbook from funny to side-splitting.  

From Hugo's Haunted Handbook, written and illustrated  by Dave Whamond

Dave Whamond can always get his readers laughing, both through his text filled with word play, and his cartoon illustrations. (Check out Muddle School, Alien Nate, and Nick the Sidekick for three previous examples.) With a ghost who feels down–"You haven't said BOO all day!"– or who complains about getting Cheeze Doodles' orange dust all over his white outfit, or with Hugo remembering their game of Hide-and Ghost Seek, Dave Whamond plays with his words and makes us laugh. But then the words are accompanied with Dave Whamond's comic artwork and all the scenes become wilder and yet still familiar. Kids, and their parents, will laugh at the scary recorder practice, the "ghost slime" at the bottom of Hugo's backpack, and Hugo lamenting the ghost ruining his sales pitch. 

If you have a ghost, reading Hugo's Haunted Handbook might be helpful but it might just offer suggestions to being a good friend, still an admirable endeavour. Now, about those monsters.

Get Out of Bed! (Revised edition)

Written by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Scholastic Canada

978-1-0397-0204-2

32 pp.

Ages 3-8

January 2024

 

It's been 25 years since the publication of the original Get Out of Bed!, illustrated by Alan and Lea Daniel. Now Robert Munsch's classic tale of a little girl who won't get out of bed has been revised with new illustrations by author-illustrator and cartoonist of Reality Check, Dave Whamond. Amy still won't get out of bed, but she's got a new landscape and characters to accompany her through dreamland.

From Get Out of Bed!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

After sneaking downstairs in the middle of the night to watch television, Amy will not wake up. Her little brother tries, her father tries, and her mother tries, but all to no avail. What can they do when they must all head to work and school? Well, they transport her and her bed, and the ginger cat, the spotted dog, and a mended stuffed bunny, to the back of her classroom. She might not get out of bed but she's certainly not going to miss school!

From Get Out of Bed!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

Regardless of the principal's efforts to wake her up, Amy continues to sleep, and her class continues to learn. As they do art and play in the gym, eat lunch, and go out for recess, Amy is right there, in her bed and sleeping away. When does she finally wake up? You'll need to read Get Out of Bed! to learn that tidbit.

Robert Munsch's story will be recognizable to anyone who has ever had to try to rouse a child or even an adult whose body is determined to sleep. (After a night of very late, late, late shows and even an early, early, early, early show, Amy's body was ravenous for sleep.) His tale of a child sleeping through the chaos of a family trying to awaken her and of a class proceeding with lessons around and even on her has all the hallmarks of a Robert Munsch story: a smidgen of reality surrounded by over-the-top silliness. And into that silliness feeds Dave Whamond's artwork of craziness. 

From Get Out of Bed!, written by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Dave Whamond

Dave Whamond knows how to take silly and elevate it with complexity of person (and animals!) and place. (Just check out his comic strip to see how a mundane interaction between two people becomes something hysterical, especially with commentary, silent and not, from Ralph the Squirrel.) Every detail adds something to the story, whether it's the hamster in the running ball, the cat annoyed with being woken, the stuffed bunny painting a self-portrait in art class–it looks far healthier in the painting!–or the dog sneaking breakfast sausages.  From Amy drooling in her sleep and her mom making breakfast in her PJs, and hockey jerseys, sticks and posters everywhere, Dave Whamond reminds kids and parents that this scene could be played out in just about any Canadian home. Because of that, young readers will look for the details and laugh at the ridiculousness of Amy's situation while knowing exactly how it could happen and maybe even to them. (Imagine worrying that your family would dispose of you and your bed in your classroom for your teacher and classmates to witness. That would be enough to get me out of bed!) The ink and watercolour art gives Get Out of Bed! that comic strip vibe but Dave Whamond knows how to keep it real while giving us the laughs.

Robert Munsch is a Canadian icon for his countless books, often illustrated by different artists. By partnering with Dave Whamond again–previously for Braids!, School Rules!, and Think Big!–Robert Munsch's stories are taking on a different flavour. They're still silly and fun but also playful and imaginative. I can't think of a better reason to get out of bed than to be able to read this one.

Muddle School

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-0486-6

144 pp.

Ages 8-13

September 2021

For every child who has ever felt nervous about starting a new school, who has been bullied, who's worried they will never make any friends, who feels like their teachers don't understand them, and who wish for do-overs for all those mistakes and embarrassing moments, Dave Whamond has your story. In fact, Muddle School is his story, and it's funny because Dave Whamond is a funny guy but also because it's so real. After all, it's everyone's story from middle school.

From Muddle School by Dave Whamond

In graphic novel format, Dave Whamond gives us David, a kid starting at a new school, wearing his father's powder-blue leisure suit, feeling a bit like an alien. He doesn't even get inside the school before a trio trash talk him and dump him and his belongings, except his new artist pens which they take, in a "Muddle" puddle. Hard to be positive sitting in a ripped and wet suit, being singled out by teachers, or eating lunch in the bathroom. 

Fortunately, he takes great pleasure in pranking his little sister, making up his own swear words and drawing. Unfortunately, his drawing is the only thing he seems to like about school. He does make a plan to take on the biggest kid, Bad Brad, but that doesn't go quite to plan. And his crush on Lisa Jordana becomes a new source of humiliation, especially when he's led astray by her friend and she comes over to his house for a birthday party when he and his trio of acquaintances dress up as the 70s band "Smooch."

From Muddle School by Dave Whamond

Not surprising that when David designs a time travel machine with new acquaintance Chad Chooloo, they set the dial for David to go back to the first day at Muddle School before everything went awry. And it works! Or does it?

From Muddle School by Dave Whamond

I suspect most middle-graders see themselves as misfits, especially as they transition from cute little kids to teens with puberty woes and more responsibilities. Middle school probably seems like a muddle to everyone. But by sharing his personal middle school woes–he appends his story with "Flash to the Future" in which he confesses to the accuracy of many of the anecdotes in Muddle School–Dave Whamond reassures young readers that they can and will get through even if it's challenging at the time and he does so with sensitivity and humour in both his text and his black pen and ink with blue digital watercolour. (Black and blue? Like a bruise? Middle school can be painful.)

 

For middle-graders who are sure they'll never make it through, refer them to Dave Whamond's Muddle School. After all, Dave Whamond became the cool grown-up who actual makes a living with his artwork, contrary to his teacher's pronouncement that he never would, and has won two Blue Spruce Awards (My Think-a-Ma-Jink, Oddrey), a Silver Birch Award (Secret Agent Y.O.U.), a Shining Willow Award (Frank and Laverne ) and numerous Reuben Awards from the National Cartoonists Society. I'd say that's pretty cool.

Think Big!

Written by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Scholastic Canada

978-1-4431-8298-0

32 pp.

Ages 3-8

June 2021

 

For every child who feels hard done by with respect to the space they've been allotted in the family home, Think Big! gives them a quirky solution that thinks outside the box–definitely outside the walls–to acquire that little bit extra of everything.

From Think Big! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

Jamaal has had it. He's the oldest child in the family–he has two younger brothers and a baby sister–and he has smallest room. He pleads his case to his parents but is told the universal parental response by both.

"Now, Jamaal," said his father, "that's the way it is." (pg. 6)

Jamaal stews on it all day. He fumes, he paces, he plays basketball with his dog, and he ponders. Finally at bedtime, he gets an idea that keeps him up implementing the changes he wants.

From Think Big! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

With his father's tools, including a jack and a ladder, Jamaal moves walls and the ceiling. He installs a hot tub, a bunk bed, an enormous stereo system and a mega TV.

From Think Big! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

But the next morning, the real chaos begins when his parents and baby sister awaken in a room the size of a closet, his brother hits his head on the ceiling when he sits up in bed and his other brother's feet are hanging out his window. While Jamaal sips on a juice box as he luxuriates in the hot tub with his dog, his family goes a little crazy. That is, until his dad recognizes the quality of Jamaal's work and asks him to do the same for their rooms.

Robert Munsch and Dave Whamond are becoming quite the duo of picture book collaboration, teaming up for zaniness of the ordinary-gone-extraordinary. With so many working and going to school from home in the past year plus, Jamaal's drive to improve his space may not be ordinary. What is extraordinary are the measures he takes and the enthusiasm with which he engineers his dream room. And Robert Munsch and Dave Whamond take us into that craziness of spirit and endeavour as Jamaal creates the room of his dreams.

From Think Big! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

Robert Munsch may be all about the silliness, but it's all good fun. There's no arrogance or privilege. Jamaal is just frustrated and decides that he would find a solution for himself, albeit a wacky one. After all, when asked to do the same for his family, he has no problems creating a whimsical home, including a matching one for his dog, that will put the rest of the cookie-cutter homes in his neighbourhood to shame.

With the silliness inherent in Robert Munsch's stories, Dave Whamond gives Think Big! the illustrations that are just as fun and over-the-top as the premise of a kid making his space truly his own. Of course, we know Jamaal can't really move walls but children don't know about load-bearing walls or structural integrity. They know what they'd like in a room and Robert Munsch gives them that–space, TV, bunk beds, and stereo–but Dave Whamond makes it playful and quirky with his pen and ink and watercolour artwork. From the toys in Jamaal's room to the family's pajamas and the dog's antics, using the TV remote, soaking in the tub and dancing, Dave Whamond will leave readers smiling and wishing they could do the same. 

To all the children who wish they could have something more in their room, whether it be space or furniture or fun, Robert Munsch and Dave Whamond's story will encourage them to dream and draw and make–perhaps only with paper, popsicle sticks or blocks–but to always think big. Apparently, if you can think it, you can build it.

Alien Nate

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-0209-1

64 pp.

Ages 6-9

April 2020

It all started with a pizza. A pizza that NASA scientists had accidentally left on board Voyager 1 in 1977 and which a ship from Vega found. Now the Vegans want more of that pizza. (Pizza is pretty great.)

Alien Nate was chosen for the mission. When he crashes his space-ship on Earth, he is discovered by kindly Fazel who, when approached by two Men in Beige suits, grabs Nate and makes a run for it, with a little help from a mysterious figure. 

From Alien Nate by Dave Whamond

Fazel decides to take the purple alien to school, covering his antennae with Dad's back-up toupee. Nate is enamoured with learning, rather than just having knowledge plugged into his head, and he loves all earth food but pizza is his favourite, except "the pineapple one. Who puts pineapples on a pizza. I mean, that's just...odd."

From Alien Nate by Dave Whamond

After his boorish classmate Frank discovers Nate is an alien, Fazel creates the Secret Alien Society to keep him quiet. Together they learn much about Vega, which Nate misses terribly, regardless of its technological brilliance and lack of imagination, and is desperate to find a way back to it.

Don't get me wrong...I love it here on Earth. I mean, you're only a one-star planet on Galaxy Advisor, but you've timed your rotation around the sun to match your calendar year. Unheard of! Plus, you have penguins, and they're so cute...

From Alien Nate by Dave Whamond

After a tasty "corn as fuel" misstep and a whole lot of brain power, plus a secret agent with girl power and booster cables, Nate evades the Men in Beige and finds his happy ending. 

Alien Nate may be classified as an early-reader graphic novel but this little pizza-craving alien has been sent by Dave Whamond to make us all laugh and appreciate imagination and pizza. The same chuckles that have drawn me to Dave Whamond's Reality Check cartoons and his earlier picture books (such as Nick the Sidekick, Rosie's Glasses, and Oddrey) will tickle those funny bones with the puns, the play on popular culture (like the blandness of Vegan food, the Men in Beige, and Galaxy Advisor ratings) and commentary on creativity, learning, always being plugged in, dealing with bullies, and diversity. The text is clever and sweet and readers will rise to support Alien Nate and Fazel in their growing friendship, in their sharing of cultures and more. 

Of course, being a graphic novel, Alien Nate does not disappoint with its illustrations. Dave Whamond's pen and ink with watercolour art is as cheeky as the story, vivid in its colours (his trademark pink-purple-periwinkle always make me smile) and inviting readers to see a story from different perspectives like front, back, above, background and up-close. It's all in good fun and in good taste too. (I can smell the pizza, and doughnuts and popcorn...)

Meet Alien Nate for a giggle or twenty and do some honest learning about the value of creativity to develop a real world of friends.

School Rules!

Written by Robert Munsch

Illustrated by Dave Whamond

Scholastic Canada

978-1-4431-8203-4

32 pp.

Ages 3-8

January 2020

When Friday afternoon at school comes to an end and the kids go home and the teacher rushes out to the bank, Cassandra hides under her desk. You see, Cassandra LOVES school. So even when the tattooed janitor mops the floor and the principal locks up, Cassandra doesn't leave.

From School Rules! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

With the school finally empty, Cassandra comes out to enjoy the books and toys and puzzles of her classroom, all with the company of the classroom pet.  At home, though, her family are going a little crazy when they realize Cassandra is not around. After calls to the police and fire department, her father finds her at school. When he asks her what she's doing there, she tells him, "I like school." Unfortunately, that's not good enough for him and he carries her home.

From School Rules! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

Though the next day is Saturday, Cassandra prepares to go to school. But, of course, the school is locked up tight. So what do you do if you want to go to school.  You buy one! At the Everything Store, she requests  "a school with dirty red bricks, a slightly scary principal, a very nice teacher and a janitor with tattoos on his arm." Apparently they can have one sent to her promptly. So when Sunday comes, her parents find "Cassandra's School" in their backyard and a very happy Cassandra enjoying her school, a little different but a whole lot the same.

From School Rules! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamond

Of course, it's a silly tale. How many kids love school that much?! But isn't it wonderful to think that there are some kids who find such joy at school that they would want to stay there all the time. Robert Munsch's classic silliness abounds and is matched by Dave Whamond's illustrations. From the guinea pig whose facial expressions reflect Cassandra's while he keeps her company, to a household in chaos–there's a cat in a drawer, a dog under the table waiting with a fork, a baby splattered with food and a young girl pulling cheese out of a casserole–and the pajama-clad family reacting to a school in their backyard, School Rules! is a collaboration of wit and wackiness, with a helping of the wonder that comes from finding something that makes you happy. 

From School Rules! by Robert Munsch, illus. by Dave Whamod

Rosie's Glasses

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Kids Can Press

978-1-77138-991-4

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

September 2018

Many of us know that feeling of waking up with a black cloud hanging over our heads. You've woken up late, it's raining outside and everything is grey.  Life has no colour. If anything can go wrong, it does. How does a child pick themselves up to see beyond the noise and strife and bad luck and gloom that pervades everything at home, on the street and at school?

From Rosie's Glasses by Dave Whamond

If you're little Rosie, you're fortunate to spot a colourful butterfly which leads you straight to a pair of round pink glasses that offer you a rosier perspective on your world. The blasé street scene now reveals flowers and bees and families with ice cream and singing birds and multi-coloured balloons. The park is filled with friendly chatter and play and joyful wildlife. At home, there's a new puppy.  

From Rosie's Glasses by Dave Whamond

Now waking up is vibrant and enthusiastic and Rosie, the darling with the rabbit-eared pigtails, sees rainbows and music and colour everywhere.  But, Rosie's new perspective may be in jeopardy when she loses her new glasses. Or is it?

From Rosie's Glasses by Dave Whamond

Rosie's Glasses may play on the premise that rose-coloured glasses tend to make life look better than it really is but Dave Whamond would not give Rosie the perspective of optimism without a bit of reality.  Her day really does start out poorly and things are dreary and unfortunate. Her pigtails even droop! But the magic that comes from those glasses is extraordinary, helping Rosie see the goodness in her reality, not just the bad.  Even when she has lost the glasses, Rosie has been infused with a dose of encouragement–the new puppy helps too–that will help her see the good and the bad, even on inevitable grey days of her future.

I know I always go on and on about Dave Whamond's illustrations from his picture books like Oddrey (Owlkids, 2012) and My Think-a-Ma-Jink (Owlkids, 2009), his first graphic novel Nick the Sidekick (Kids Can Press, 2018) and, of course, his syndicated cartoon Reality Check (see samples at his website at http://davewhamond.com/reality-check/) but the art is fabulous! It draws the eye everywhere to reveal details in faces and in buildings, in scenes and in actions. With Rosie's Glasses being a wordless picture book, readers, children and adults alike, will be able to linger on illustrations and find more and more to discuss and contemplate. 

Rosie's Glasses is a story that offers encouragement on observing life from different perspectives and it's a buffet of colour and activity.  Teachers and parents will undoubtedly, as they should, take advantage of the book's value in teaching visual literacy but there's much more to the story and the art. So, be sure to smell the roses along that pedagogical path because there's much more here than a lesson. There's life: the good, the bad and the rosy.

From Rosie's Glasses by Dave Whamond

Nick the Sidekick

Written and illustrated by Dave Whamond

Kids Can Press

978-1-77138-355-4

48 pp.

Ages 6-9

April 2018

Celebrated cartoonist of the syndicated Reality Check and author-illustrator of the three Oddrey books (Oddrey, Oddrey and the New Kid, and Oddrey Joins the Team; Owlkids, 2012, 2013 and 2014) and My Think-a-Ma-Jink (Owlkids, 2009), Dave Whamond brilliantly applies his cartooning skills to a new genre, the graphic novel, and superbly masters it with the flair of a superhero and the diligence of a loyal sidekick.

Nick is a superhero assistant with incredible hearing courtesy of his incredibly-large ears.  Though his classmates may ridicule him, his best friend Tess always has his back.  That comes in handy when you're the superhero assistant to the egotistic Super Fantastic Guy who wants to use Nick's super hearing without giving him the credit for his cleverness or contributions.  Super Fantastic Guy can't even remember Nick's name, always calling him Rick, and even getting all his details wrong on his membership to the National Superhero Society. And Nick does not appreciate the lack of respect and his designation as a (sigh!) sidekick, especially considering he does all the crime-solving! But it's Nick who learns that he is the true superhero when he uses his super talent to save Super Fantastic Guy and let Tess help bring the egomaniac down a bit from the superhero pedestal he's always taken advantage to enjoy.

From Nick the Sidekick by Dave Whamond

As much as Nick is a superhero (he does have the card to prove it), he's really the anti-hero in that he accomplishes much good without the public recognition and even his partner's appreciation.  Nick is probably the antithesis of the highly-acclaimed superhero in that he doesn't parade himself in front of the public and demand accolades, though he would appreciate a little respect and for everyone to stop calling him a sidekick. 

From Nick the Sidekick by Dave Whamond

Dave Whamond's artwork is made for graphic novels. Okay, I know it's also great for his cartoons and his picture books but, by applying it to storytelling in the graphic novel format, he can tell more story by creating action-packed plot lines that move with the force of his illustrations.  There's movement and energy and kapow!  Nick the Sidekick delivers a punch in character and story and has just launched Dave Whamond's career into a different layer of the stratosphere, though we knew it was inevitable. As much as Nick can't fly and hates all the clichés related to superheroics, from the Spandex onesies and to the criminals' responses when caught, he's going to be joining Dave Whamond on that trajectory. Happy travels to our newest superheroes!

From Nick the Sidekick by Dave Whamond