Benji, the Bad Day, and Me

by Sally J. Pla, Ken Min (Illustrator)

Overview

Choices, Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)
Starred Review, Shelf Awareness

Sammy is having the absolute rottenest, worst day ever. His little brother, Benji, knows exactly what that's like.

Nothing seems to be going right for Sammy today. At school, he got in trouble for kicking a fence, then the cafeteria ran out of pizza for lunch. After he walks home in the pouring rain, he finds his autistic little brother Benji is having a bad day too. On days like this, Benji has a special play-box where he goes to feel cozy and safe. Sammy doesn't have a special place, and he's convinced no one cares how he feels or even notices him. But somebody is noticing, and may just have an idea on how to help Sammy feel better.

In this tender story about siblings, author Sally J. Pla shares her experience of raising sons with different personality traits and needs. Benji, the Bad Day, and Me embraces the philosophy that we are all part of a wide spectrum of neurodiversity. And on those really bad, rotten days, you can always count on family to be there for you.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620143452
Publisher:	Lee & Low Books
Publication date:	10/09/2018
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	224,110
Product dimensions:	10.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD500L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Sally J. Pla is the award-winning author of several novels for young people, including The Someday Birds and Stanley Will Probably Be Fine. Many of Pla's stories are based on her experience of raising three active boys, very close in age. When her sons were young and having a bad day, they loved being "made into burritos"—getting wrapped tightly in their blankets. The tight pressure appealed especially to Pla's autistic son. Pla lives with her family in Southern California. You can find her online at sallyjpla.com.

Ken Min's picture book debut Hot, Hot Roti for Dada-Ji, published by Lee & Low Books, received the Picture Book Honor for Literature from the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA). Ken is an illustrator and animation storyboard artist for commercials and animated TV shows such as Futurama, Fairly Odd Parents, andNew Looney Tunes. His illustration work has been recognized numerous times by the Society of Children's Books Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI). Min lives in Los Angeles, California. You can see more of his artwork online at kenminart.com.

Editorial Reviews

07/23/2018
Sammy, a boy with floppy black hair, had a bad day at school, and back home, he feels overlooked. Sammy’s mother tells him to be quiet—his brother, Benji, is playing in his small, house-shaped “box,” a sign that he, too, is having a rough day. “When I’ve had a bad day, no one tiptoes or speaks softly,” Sammy laments. But when Benji sees that his brother is sad, he comforts him in the best way he knows. In Min’s acrylic and colored pencil art, figures and forms resembling cut paper are set against calm brushed backgrounds. Pla doesn’t overtly state that Benji is autistic (an author’s note explores the topic further) but emphasizes his behaviors and qualities. With a light touch, Pla offers a thoughtful reminder that all siblings need extra love and attention sometimes. Ages 4–7. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

0

From the Publisher

2018-07-30

Who wins in a competition for attention with a sibling with autism? It's not a "who," it's a "what": brotherly love.

It seems the universe is conspiring against Sammy. He is fed up with trouble at school, a pizza shortage, a missed bus stop, and rain, and he gets home only to be ignored because Benji is having a bad day and has retreated to his box. Sammy reminisces about better times and blueberry smoothies, but when he starts crying over spilled milk, Benji leaves his cardboard sanctuary to snuggle his brother in a blue-blanket burrito, demonstrating that love is a never-fail remedy for bad days. Vibrant, full-color illustrations in acrylic and colored pencil, punctuated by his monochromatic memories, accompany the first-person narrative. On face-to-face wordless pages, Min lets readers see a woeful Sammy through the narrow window in Benji's box, ensuring Benji's agency. Giving order and structure to what can be an unpredictable world, the wooden inhabitants of Benji's block city march across the title page, scatter about the story, and finally line up in columns and rows on the back of the book jacket. Pla selects a common theme, the power of familial love to overcome adversity, and deftly moves the challenges of autism to a supporting detail rather than a distracting focus in this simple picture book. That Min depicts this family as people of color further broadens this story's inclusive reach.

An ordinary story is given a spark of life by the inclusion of an empathetic little brother with autism. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews