Boris and the Worrisome Wakies

by Helen Lester, Lynn Munsinger (Illustrator)

Overview

It’s bedtime, but Boris has the worrisome wakies! No matter how much Papa and Mama badger their little badger, Boris can’t sleep.

“I’m hunnnnngry! I think my PJs are on backwards! My cuddle-bunny is hogging the bed!” He’s too itchy, too thirsty, too everything.

But the wakies at bedtime lead to snoozing—and trouble—at school! Can Boris banish the worrisome wakies for good?

Fans of Helen Lester and Lynn Munsinger's comic creations Tacky the Penguin and Wodney Wat will find much to smile about in this relatable tale.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544640948
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/07/2017
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	353,270
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD540L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Helen Lester has written many hilarious and popular picture books, including the Tacky the Penguin series and Hooway for Wodney Wat. She lives in New York. www.helenlester.com

Lynn Munsinger has illustrated more than ninety books for children, many written by her frequent collaborator, Helen Lester. She lives in Vermont.

Editorial Reviews

"Lester’s lively, chucklesome story includes exaggerated statements, onomatopoeia, rhyming chants, and shifting text sizes, which all add to the fun atmosphere. Munsinger brings Lester’s story to life with detailed watercolor scenes filled with warm, fuzzy badgers and an array of hilarious facial expressions. Kiddos with bedtime battles might find some solidarity with Boris."  –Booklist —

From the Publisher

08/01/2017
PreS-Gr 1—Boris cannot get with the badger schedule. Instead of sleeping all day, Boris is awake and squirming all about. Then, when it is time to get up and go to school, Boris is too tired to do anything. As Boris sleeps through school, the reader gets to see all the fun things he is missing out on, like gym, art, music, and lunch. After Boris's sleeping at school routine is set, his classmates and teacher quit trying to include him in their fun activities. After hearing about all the fun activities he is missing—like field day, the school play, and the class picture—Boris decides to get it together and sleep all day so he can learn and have fun at school all night. After a full day's sleep, Boris is a new badger, ready to participate in school. What a difference a good day's sleep makes. The art is beautiful, and the text is skillfully arranged around the drawings to help readers follow the action. This is a well-illustrated story, but much of the treatment of Boris by his schoolmates could be described as mean and mocking. While this eventually causes a change in Boris's behavior, the book shows a lot of mistreatment of the main character. VERDICT Schools sensitive to bullying messages may be wary of this book due to the taunting and teasing that happens when Boris is too tired to participate.—Nicole Detter-Smith, Homestead High School, IN

School Library Journal

2017-02-04
Trouble sleeping keeps little Boris from thriving at school.Boris, a nocturnal, anthropomorphic badger child, can't sleep during the day due to the titular "worrisome wakies" that make him toss and turn until sundown. When he goes to school in the evening, he falls asleep and misses out on everything. Munsinger's illustrations depict the fun that his classmates describe to him when he finally begins to worry about what he's been missing, including "The school play. You were a rock." Throughout the book, cartoon-style watercolor-and-ink illustrations build on the text's playful humor, but on this spread, the illustration of the school play depicts a sleeping Boris as Plymouth Rock lying before smiling badger children who are costumed like Pilgrims and carry a roasted turkey and a pumpkin, while another is clad as a stereotypical Indian in a feather headdress and holding corn. While humor may have been the intent, many will find the result anything but funny when they consider the picture's outdated whitewashing of colonialist history. Moving on, Boris resolves to get a good day's sleep so that he can participate fully at school, and he ends up being the "liveliest cub" there. This book needs to reject stereotypes in order to get woke. (Picture book. 4-6)

Kirkus Reviews