Sea Monster's First Day

May 23, 2011
Ernest, a goofy-looking green sea monster, wants to make friends at school, but he's too big for the jungle gym, is snubbed by private schools of fish ("It felt like everybody was already part of a group"), and gets teased by the largemouth (and smallmouth) bass: "Your mother's a brachiosaurus!" By heeding his mother's advice to use his imagination and maintaining a positive attitude, Ernest rides out the ups and downs of his first day. With ample aquatic puns and boisterous, mixed-media artwork, it's a splashy story about fitting in. Ages 4â8.

June 1, 2011

Ernest discovers that making friends is sometimes the hardest part of starting school, but that with a little perseverance and imagination, things can turn around.

Ernest the sea monster starts his school day with a positive attitude, setting out to make some new friends. But somehow, something always goes awry. Ernest's large size has a lot to do with it, and it isn't long before the other fish in the lake are making fun and shunning him. But the sea monster doesn't let that get him down—there's plenty to do at school. He reads, sings, takes a field trip, tastes some new plants and plays tug-of-war. After lunch, he tries again, this time introducing himself to some sturgeon, who immediately befriend him. And by following his mother's advice, his imagination allows him to use his large size to his advantage and make even more new friends. Without becoming preachy, Messner offers lots of great messages for children. While Rash's gouache-and-ink illustrations don't downplay Ernest's sad feelings, they also don't dwell on them. The cartoon sea monster exudes positivity, and the other species of fish have personalities all their own.

Presents kids with some great advice and solid solutions to the most common first-day what-ifs. (Picture book. 4-7)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

July 1, 2011

K-Gr 2-A young sea monster narrates his account of his first day of school as things get off to a rather shaky start. Ernest's large size makes fitting in difficult and also scares off potential friends. He is snubbed by "private schools" (of fish) and bullied and whispered about by largemouth and smallmouth bass before he finally meets some big sturgeons that don't swim away. Things look up, yet Ernest still has problems. Then he sees the giant roller coaster, the Diving Dragon, at the lake's edge and gets an idea to make himself more popular. "With a little imagination and my new friends, this new school was working out just fine." The mixed-media pictures not only support the sketchy story line, but also fill in the gaps. The bold and lively cartoon artwork provides genuine enthusiasm and humor that seems forced and superficial in the writing. Consider this an additional or supplemental purchase.-Carolyn Janssen, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, OH

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2012
It's not easy for Ernest the sea monster to fit in at school since he's so much bigger than the other fish-students. He keeps a positive attitude and makes a few pals; a seaside amusement park then gives him an idea for how to really wow the crowd. The story's humor and watery blue- and green-tinged illustrations have appeal.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)