If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't! (Magnolia Says DON'T! Series #2)

by Elise Parsley

Overview

The second book in the New York Times bestselling series that began with If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don't! is another uproarious cautionary tale about things that DON'T belong together!

If your mom says to get ready to play at the beach, she means with a boat, or a Frisbee, or a shovel. She is NOT talking about the piano. But Magnolia is a little girl with a big idea, determination, and one very heavy upright piano that, she insists, she needs to take with her. What's the worst that can happen? In a riotous series of mishaps, Magnolia quickly learns that—not surprisingly—a piano doesn't mix well with sand, sun, and seagulls!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316376594
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	05/03/2016
Series:	Magnolia Says DON'T! Series , #2
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	249,220
Product dimensions:	9.30(w) x 11.90(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD510L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Elise Parsley has written and illustrated the New York Times bestseller If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, DON'T! and three other stories about Magnolia, as well as How to Catch a Clover Thief and Neck & Neck. She also illustrated The Magic Word by Mac Barnett. Elise and her family live in South Dakota, and she invites you to visit her website at eliseparsley.com.

Editorial Reviews

4/26/2016
Just as she was determined to bring a giant reptile to show-and-tell in If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don't!, willful Magnolia has her own ideas about what to bring on a beach vacation in her latest tale. As the title suggests, Magnolia wants to stuff more than a sand shovel and a Frisbee in her suitcase—she wants to pack her upright piano! Hilarious and engaging from start—this will quickly become a bedtime favorite! Read More

B&N Reads

05/02/2016
Magnolia, the star of Parsley’s If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t!, and her multiracial family are beach-bound, and Magnolia insists on bringing the family piano. Before long, the piano has smooshed their lunch, gotten covered in seagull droppings, and floated off into the water. A situation this off-kilter requires a solution to match—fishing pole to the rescue!—and even that leads to more surprises. Magnolia’s wiser-than-thou narration and Parsley’s energetic illustrations are in perfect comic sync, though no words are needed for a misanthropically hilarious scene of Magnolia and her piano being attacked by hungry seagulls. Ages 4–8. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for If You Ever Want to Take a Piano to the Beach, Don't!:

"Magnolia's voice is wonderfully childlike... her facial expressions top all, perfectly capturing both her exuberance and her mood swings. A delightful demonstration of just one of many things not to take to the beach; the brainstorming possibilities are endless."—Kirkus Reviews

Praise for If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don't!:
"Parsley's digitally created illustrations brim with energy and just-edgy-enough humor... and the well-chosen school-day details in both the artwork and text... deliver a steady stream of laughs."—Publishers Weekly

[It] revels in the rampage of the id-here in the form of a formidable and toothy crocodilian. Elise Parsley's jaunty second-person narration is matched by comically expressive and detailed digital artwork that seems to shout from the page."—Wall Street Journal

"Children are likely to get a kick out of Magnolia's not-quite-contrite tone and the colorful chaos her giant pet creates."—New York Times

"This is an engaging debut picture book [that] will appeal to a wide age range. Here's hoping for more adventures with Magnolia!"—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

05/01/2016
PreS-Gr 2—There's nothing like a day at the seashore. The gifts offered up by the restless ocean are always magical and stimulating—who knows what might be dreamt up and built. Of course, getting to the beach can often be a wearing process, and in this amusing story, a young girl decides that she must take her piano on her family's outing. Magnolia will not be deterred by the instrument's size or inappropriateness; she will bring it, and her busy mother finally consents by demanding that she "better not lose it!" Although initially this seems a far-fetched possibility, before long that is exactly what happens. How the piano ends up drifting out to sea and how Magnolia finally discovers the pleasure of finding shells make for a charming and hilarious story. Parsley highlights the joy, determination, and unreasonableness of young children and how parents can capitulate to the demands of their kids in order to achieve peace and provide them with a special experience. Her strong lines and bright colors are perfect for a book about the beach, but it is her expressive faces that will captivate readers. With just a few lines, Parsley conveys the many emotions of childhood, from excitement to frustration to contentment to dismay. VERDICT This humorous selection about willful and exuberant Magnolia is perfect for storytime or one-on-one sharing, especially when preparing for a trip to the beach.—Sally James, South Hillsborough Elementary School, CA

School Library Journal

2016-03-02
The voice of experience (about alligators at school) this time deals with her inability to leave her beloved piano at home while visiting the beach. Using her gift of hindsight, Magnolia clarifies for readers that "if your mom says to get ready to play at the beach, she means with a boat, or a Frisbee, or a shovel. / She is not talking about the piano." Nonetheless, her mom doesn't forbid it; she just tells her not to lose it. Once the piano is at the beach (a feat in and of itself) and it's been tested to make sure it still works, Magnolia's account quickly become reminiscent of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, one thing leading to another. Her lunch break attracts some gulls, the gulls poop, and therefore it's time for a bath. (!) And the scallop shell she comes home with? It makes a great boat, a solid Frisbee, and a nifty shovel, but it ain't a piano. Magnolia's voice is wonderfully childlike, describing how "your legs will get draggy" while pushing the piano to the beach, but her facial expressions top all, perfectly capturing both her exuberance and her mood swings. In the digital illustrations, Magnolia could be Asian (or maybe Latina); her mother and little brother are white, and she has a black baby sister. A delightful demonstration of just one of many things not to take to the beach; the brainstorming possibilities are endless. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews