Yummy Yucky
A teacher’s look at why this book belongs in the Page Grabbers stage.
Why it fits Page Grabbers (for young toddlers who treat books as things to do)
Paired opposites - spaghetti yummy, worms yucky - with maximum giggles. Opposites are a toddler's first abstract idea, served here with perfect comic timing. The whole Patricelli shelf is worth owning.
What makes it special
Patricelli's genius is the toddler's own binary worldview, validated in print: everything is either yummy or yucky. Her bald, big-eyed baby delivers each verdict with billboard-scale expressions on flat color grounds. It's the fastest laugh-per-page ratio in board books, perfectly sized for a two-minute attention window.
About Leslie Patricelli
Leslie Patricelli owns the toddler-binary genre: one bald, expressive baby weighing life's great choices (yummy/yucky, quiet/loud) in flat acrylic and perfect comic timing. Her board books are toddler stand-up comedy.
The baby was born as a doodle while Patricelli was juggling her own infants; she has said the character works because a diapered everybaby can get away with anything.
Also by this author: Quiet Loud · Big Little · Tubby
More from “Point and Name”
This book is part of The Best Books for Toddlers: 30 Teacher Picks (Page Grabbers) in our guide The Best Children’s Books by Age — 120 books chosen by the Montessori-certified teachers at Creative Minds Montessori in Frisco, TX. Come see how we build readers →
Nobody paid for this review — not the author, not the publisher — and the store link above earns us nothing. Our only interest is the reader this book fits.