If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't!

May 25, 2015
A shaggy-haired, moon-faced girl named Magnolia morphs from smug to seething in Parsleyâs debut, a cautionary tale about the risks of bringing an alligator to school. In second-person narration à la If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, Magnolia explains how to defuse an unhappy teacher (âYouâll tell her that itâs okay and that you know all about alligators. The alligator will be good and quiet and he wonât eat anyoneâcross your heartâ), but the gatorâs mischievous tendencies test the girlâs patience and threaten to land her in the principalâs office. (Eventually, Magnoliaâs name ends up written on the classroom chalkboard with three checkmarks next to it âand an underlineâ!) Parsleyâs digitally created illustrations brim with energy and just-edgy-enough humor (during math, a classmate is blissfully unaware how close he is to becoming the alligatorâs next meal), and the well-chosen school-day details in both the artwork and text (âBy now, of course, youâll wish you brought a hollow stick or a birdâs nest or some sparkly rocks for show-and-tellâ) deliver a steady stream of laughs. Ages 3â6. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

May 2, 2016
Magnolia, the star of Parsley’s If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don’t!, and her multiracial family are beach-bound, and Magnolia insists on bringing the family piano. Before long, the piano has smooshed their lunch, gotten covered in seagull droppings, and floated off into the water. A situation this off-kilter requires a solution to match—fishing pole to the rescue!—and even that leads to more surprises. Magnolia’s wiser-than-thou narration and Parsley’s energetic illustrations are in perfect comic sync, though no words are needed for a misanthropically hilarious scene of Magnolia and her piano being attacked by hungry seagulls. Ages 4–8. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

March 15, 2016
The voice of experience (about alligators at school) this time deals with her inability to leave her beloved piano at home while visiting the beach. Using her gift of hindsight, Magnolia clarifies for readers that "if your mom says to get ready to play at the beach, she means with a boat, or a Frisbee, or a shovel. / She is not talking about the piano." Nonetheless, her mom doesn't forbid it; she just tells her not to lose it. Once the piano is at the beach (a feat in and of itself) and it's been tested to make sure it still works, Magnolia's account quickly become reminiscent of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, one thing leading to another. Her lunch break attracts some gulls, the gulls poop, and therefore it's time for a bath. (!) And the scallop shell she comes home with? It makes a great boat, a solid Frisbee, and a nifty shovel, but it ain't a piano. Magnolia's voice is wonderfully childlike, describing how "your legs will get draggy" while pushing the piano to the beach, but her facial expressions top all, perfectly capturing both her exuberance and her mood swings. In the digital illustrations, Magnolia could be Asian (or maybe Latina); her mother and little brother are white, and she has a black baby sister. A delightful demonstration of just one of many things not to take to the beach; the brainstorming possibilities are endless. (Picture book. 4-8)

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May 1, 2016

PreS-Gr 2-There's nothing like a day at the seashore. The gifts offered up by the restless ocean are always magical and stimulating-who knows what might be dreamt up and built. Of course, getting to the beach can often be a wearing process, and in this amusing story, a young girl decides that she must take her piano on her family's outing. Magnolia will not be deterred by the instrument's size or inappropriateness; she will bring it, and her busy mother finally consents by demanding that she "better not lose it!" Although initially this seems a far-fetched possibility, before long that is exactly what happens. How the piano ends up drifting out to sea and how Magnolia finally discovers the pleasure of finding shells make for a charming and hilarious story. Parsley highlights the joy, determination, and unreasonableness of young children and how parents can capitulate to the demands of their kids in order to achieve peace and provide them with a special experience. Her strong lines and bright colors are perfect for a book about the beach, but it is her expressive faces that will captivate readers. With just a few lines, Parsley conveys the many emotions of childhood, from excitement to frustration to contentment to dismay.

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2017
Magnolia warns readers about bringing a piano to the beach: it'll be ruined by seagulls and drift away when you try to clean it; and when you try to fish it out, you'll instead reel in...the best find ever. This silly, childlike If You Give a Mouse a Cookiestyle story is bolstered by digital drawings that focus on Magnolia's priceless facial expressions.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)