Monster and Mouse Go Camping by Deborah Underwood - ESSENTIAL

Monster and Mouse Go Camping by Deborah Underwood.  PICTURE BOOK. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018. $18. 9780544648326

BUYING ADVISORY: Pre-K, EL (K-3) - ESSENTIAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

Mouse really wants to go camping with Monster. Monster has never been camping before so he isn’t really sure what he’s getting into. He knows there will be food there though, so, he’s in. They pack up their stuff and start on their way. Monster gets hungry. While Mouse scopes out the woods, Monster decides to have a snack. Unfortunately, Monster doesn’t know that they camping equipment is not the food that Mouse has brought. Once they get to their camping spot, Mouse realizes Monster has eaten all the sleeping bags and the tent, as well as the lantern. But luckily, there is still food! Except, Mouse forgot the food. They comfort one another in the cold, with hungry bellies and decide to investigate a glow up ahead. They find some other campers and all their problems are solved.

This is a really cute book, with a great twist at the end. The somewhat clueless friends are kind to one another when each of them makes mistakes. It’s a fun introduction to the basics of what you need when camping and how to react when someone you care about might not understand something that you do.

Shay, High School Librarian, MLS