Sloppy Takes the Plunge

by Sean Julian

Overview

Everyone loves a good hug and a good bath!



Sloppy the tree dragon doesn’t want to take a bath.

“Being mucky is what a tree dragon is all about.” Could it be that getting clean is nearly as fun as getting dirty?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780735843066
Publisher:	NorthSouth Books
Publication date:	09/04/2018
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	8.40(w) x 10.20(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Sean Julian enjoyed art from an early age, focusing on potato printmaking and creating plasticine dinosaurs. He now focuses his talents on children’s book illustrations, where he can follow his passion to draw hairy gorillas, bears, and dinosaurs. His pictures delight and entertain. He lives in Bristol, England.

Editorial Reviews

This is such a wonderful book to read to young children to help them understand that it is OK to be afraid to try something new but being brave can also lead to new and exciting experiences.

Youth Services Book Review - Katrina Yurenka

In a clever visual spread, the pond is shown in cutaway side view, including a plug on a chain, prompting children to make a direct connection to their own bathtubs.

Booklist - Lucinda Whitehurst

Pacing is everything here as audiences are lulled into sympathy with the hugless dragon until the very last page. Mournful Sloppy, with his eggplant-shaped snout, barely-there mouth, and scales that look like tidy, distinct green leaves, initially doesn’t seem to have earned his name, looking more floppy than sloppy as his sadness deepens. Dewdrop is an effective and expressive targeted snubber, turning up her pert little nose and angling her eyebrows at Sloppy as he tries to get a hug and smiling sweetly at the other critters.

The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

08/01/2018
PreS—Another heartwarming installment from the author/illustrator. Sloppy the tree dragon is back and this time, he is jumping in puddles and getting completely muddy. His friend Dewdrop convinces him that he needs a bath, but only after he decides to set a good example for a group of reluctant ducklings by jumping into the crisp, clear water. To his amazement, Sloppy loves his bath and is finally clean enough to thank his friend for her encouragement with a big hug, and a bit of mischief! The story is fun, humorous, and one that many children will relate to—not wanting to take a bath. The illustrations are very appealing, with the happily cartoonish characters infused with rich, warm colors that are full of depth and dimension. Sloppy's caring and helpful nature is contagious, and the innocence of this picture book for young children is refreshing. VERDICT Fans of Sloppy and newcomers alike will be delighted with this latest installment.—Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE

School Library Journal

2018-06-11
Sloppy the tree dragon finally earned his heart's desire in Sloppy Wants a Hug (2017), but now Dewdrop the fairy has again turned standoffish.Her reluctance to bestow further hugs is understandable, as Sloppy's vigorous mucking about in puddles has left him a mess. Her suggestion that he take a bath is initially greeted with horror, as he's never had one, and anyway there might be sharks or crocodiles in the pond. At Dewdrop's coaxing, though, and also when he sees a trio of ducklings expressing similar reservations to their mama—"Quack (Sharks!) Quack! (Crocodiles!)"—he does finally screw his courage to the sticking place. Although it's about a dragon, the book offers much that will be familiar to grotty toddlers: The ducklings look like rubber duckies, and Julian provides the pond with both a drain plug and a floating basket of sponges, brushes, and bottles of bubbly soap. Sloppy himself resembles a flop-eared plush toy with, like his diminutive, light skinned friend, undersized wings. He comes out of the water feeling both brave and "AMAZING!" He gets his hug too, though (you'd think she'd have learned her lesson from last time) in return he lays "a great big gooey lick" on Dewdrop that leaves her hair a slimy tangle and sends her off for a bath of her own.Just the ticket for allaying incipient ablutophobia. (Picture book. 2-4)

Kirkus Reviews

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