The Unwelcome Surprise

by Olga Herrera

Overview

Perfect for fans of Something's Wrong! and Can I Be Your Dog?, The Unwelcome Surprise is a charming new baby story full of debut author-illustrator Olga Herrera's incredibly humorous art, and that explores the fears and joys that come with change.

Every morning, Bongo walks downstairs to get his food, passing his dried-up potted plant, his old stained chair, and his stinky stained carpet. Until one morning...something is different! Something monstrous is in his way! Bongo is beside himself with worry; will it take his walks? What if it eats his food? Or even worse...what if it takes his family?!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250827678
Publisher:	Feiwel & Friends
Publication date:	04/18/2023
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	8.35(w) x 10.30(h) x 0.35(d)
Lexile:	AD530L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Olga Herrera was born in Miami, Florida, to a Cuban mother and an Ecuadorian father. She grew up in Ecuador and returned to the United States as a teenager. She earned her bachelor's of Fine Arts from the Ringling College of Art and Design, in Sarasota, Florida, with a major in Illustration, graduating with honors in 2003. She began her career as an illustrator; using traditional media, and sculpture. As her career progressed she fell in love with digital illustration and narrative storytelling. Now, she writes her own stories to illustrate, inspired by quirky characters and situations in her life. She lives in Southern Maryland with her husband, two children, two dogs, a bearded dragon, Kiwi the parakeet, and many fat goldfish. The Unwelcome Surprise is her debut picture book.

Editorial Reviews

2023-02-08
Can a dog adapt to changes?

Bongo the pup has daily routines: He rolls out of bed, wanders to his plant, sits on his favorite chair, sniffs his stinky carpet, then trots to the kitchen for breakfast. But this morning, an odd-looking object is in his way. Plus, there’s stuff on his chair, Mom hasn’t served breakfast, and the family has gathered around the new items. What’s up—and will these new things turn his life upside down? Protesting barks result in shushes, and when Bongo pees on “the thing,” he ends up in timeout. But then Mom feeds him a delayed breakfast, and he discovers his earlier fears were baseless. Afterward, Dad presents a surprise—a new baby. Guess who loves it? The baby won’t be a surprise to readers, for whom pictorial clues have been provided. This sweet story doesn’t add anything new to the canon about adapting to new family “interlopers,” but it’s charming and honest, and props to it for acknowledging that pets deserve reassurance, as do older siblings, when new babies come along. The brown-skinned family adapts cleverly to show expressive Bongo he won’t be supplanted by the newcomer. The colorful digital illustrations are warm, lively, and unfussy; children will enjoy identifying the telltale items signifying that an infant lives in this household. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Babies and dogs—no unwelcome surprises there. A bouncy story young readers will relate to and appreciate. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews