4 out of 4 stars
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Len Foley’s Four Funny Potatoes is a picture book geared towards children in the age range of about two to six years old. Its fantastically exuberant rhymes and pictures will delight adults reading this aloud to children too. It would be easy to read the book aloud in a way that would entertain children. This book will appeal to those who like the books of Mo Willems.
Foley uses a mixture of media. Photographs of food items give realism, but he has drawn faces on them to make them come alive as personifications. The pictures are lively and energetic. There is variety in font and in color throughout the text making for lively page layouts. Overall, the visuals will be highly engaging for children.
The images create humor and so does the story line, which focuses on the plight of a lonely banana. Three potatoes try to convince him to join in their song of the four potatoes. He tries to insist on his distinct identity as a banana. Not a potato, not a yellow zucchini, but a banana!
What children will probably focus on most are the jokes. There is also, however, a subtle and admirable message here about valuing everyone for who they really are, rather than trying to fit them into preconceived ideas of how they should be or insisting that everyone needs to be the same. This message will likely sail right over the heads of young readers who will be focused instead on the ridiculousness of not being able to identify a banana as a banana. Adults could, however, use the story of the banana as a springboard for conversations about celebrating human diversity. There is one potential minor drawback to the book, however. A sideline plot focuses on the risk to the foods that they might be eaten. Perhaps very sensitive readers might find this alarming, given that the food items have now come alive as characters. Most children, however, will find this adds to the humor.
The production values of the book are very strong. It is carefully edited, without any errors. I rate this book an enthusiastic 4 out of 4 stars for the enormous pleasure it will give to children. This book deserves a wide audience.
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Four Funny Potatoes!
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