Whales and Dolphins Stickers Book

In her picture-book debut, which follows the story of young mouse-rebel named Jam and his night-time adventures under a bright full moon, Denis Doyen crafts a cautionary tale in poetic language that will delight readers with its tongue-tripping creativity. Words are cobbled to words, and something new - the "qui-etiquette" of proper nocturnal mouse behavior, the "preycautions" necessary for small creatures to stay safe - is created. The tripping narrative is accompanied by artist Barry Moser's darkly dramatic illustrations, which capture the sense of danger that builds throughout the story, culminating in Jam's waterside confrontation with a snake.

I enjoyed the wordplay in Once Upon a Twice (including the title itself), I enjoyed the rhythm and rhyme of the text, and I enjoyed the lovely illustrations. Despite all of this enjoyment however, I didn't come away with the feeling that this was a book I'd want to read again and again. Perhaps the conclusion of the story - don't go exploring, and do what you're told, or terrible things will happen to you - had something to do with it, or perhaps this simply suffered from being compared to another rhyming picture-book I read at the same time: Margaret Mahy's delightful Bubble Trouble . Whatever the case may be, and despite its undeniable virtues, this one is just not destined to be a personal favorite.

Still, I truly did appreciate the creativity of Doyen's text, and recommend that readers - particularly children who love poetry and wordplay - pick it up and decide for themselves.