I have a “Love/Hate” relationship with surprises. Especially if I expected to read something and something else pops up entirely! I was going to read Because Barbara: Barbara Cooney Paints Her World by Sarah Mackenzie and illustrated by Eileen Ryan Ewen, but when I clicked on the button to do so, Dear Duck, Please Come! by Sarah MacKenzie and illustrated by Charles Santoso came up instead. So, me being me, I took it as a sign to read it.
And actually, I’m glad I did. Duck gets a letter from their friend Rabbit saying they have lost their tooth. Well, this upsets poor Duck, but like the good friend they are they look for it. They look high and low and in-between. They get other friends to join in, but they cannot find Rabbit’s lost tooth. When one friend suggests they tell Rabbit, after all Duck was being a good friend to look for the tooth, and Rabbit did invite them over, so it would be the good friend thing to go see them as well. When they all get to Rabbit’s house, there is a large surprise for them: Rabbit knew where the tooth was all along! They just wanted to share the good news with all their friends!
This book is terribly sweet and simple. The concept is perfect for the young child who might take things literally (after all when one loses something they must find it right? But that same word “lost” has another meaning when it comes to teeth). The illustrations are sweet, simple, colorful, minimalist but not lacking. The fact that Rabbit lives in a carrot shaped house is the best.
Due in January 2025 I hope everyone who needs this book finds it!