★ "The watercolor, colored-pencil, and crayon illustrations by Caldecott medalist Santat intensify the fun and meaning of this romp." —Booklist, starred review

"Bright art captures the mania, with cotton-candy hues representing each of the anthropomorphic days . . . A humorous, meandering approach to a life lesson about leading every day with benevolence." —Kirkus

"[T]he amount of silliness carries the story through . . . With their oddball shapes and candy-colored hues, the days each have a distinct personality [and] make vivid, solid anchor points as the chaos around them grows." —BCCB

"In this amusing spoof of talent competitions . . . the creators have something more in mind than giving readers a highly inventive tickle." —Publishers Weekly

"Santat’s iconic style launches these antics in vivid, expressive illustrations; his pages are saturated with color and, with the funny word-bubble text, give this a graphic novel feel . . . Occasional rhymes provide a sing-song quality that appears at choice moments in the vibrant narrative. Enjoyably executed, this story emphasizes the importance of kindness in a world that sometimes forgets." —School Library Journal

2020-11-27
To the consternation of the other six days of the week, Sunday quits in protest, tired of being unappreciated for her consistent delivery of a weekly “beautiful free day.”

Sunday’s abrupt decision prompts the others to look for her replacement with an advertisement inviting auditions before the remaining six days. The competition quickly grows increasingly fierce as ideas are broached for DogDay, Big-BurpDay, PieDay, Band-AidDay, and, ridiculously, FirepoleSlidingIntoPoolsOfCottonCandyDay. Amid all this boisterous and frenzied rivalry, a little girl approaches the misunderstood Sunday with a small plant to say thank you and to suggest “simply a nice day. A day when people can show more kindness to each other.” The child’s humble gratitude is enough for Sunday to return to her important weekly position and to prompt all the days to value kindness as the key to each day’s possibilities. Bright art captures the mania, with cotton-candy hues representing each of the anthropomorphic days. Though undeniably comical as it unfolds in busy cartoon illustrations and speech balloons, the drawn-out, nonsensical, and unexpected course the narrative takes may be a stretch for youngsters who cannot always distinguish among days. Kindness as the ingredient for achieving a harmonious week is nevertheless a valuable message, however circuitously expressed. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 50% of actual size.)

A humorous, meandering approach to a life lesson about leading every day with benevolence. (Picture book. 5-7)