Gerald is careful. Piggie is not.
Piggie cannot help smiling. Gerald can.
Gerald worries so that Piggie does not have to.
Gerald and Piggie are best friends.
In My New Friend Is So Fun!, Piggie has found a new friend! But is Gerald ready to share?
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
29 of 30 people found the following review helpful.
My New Friend Is So Fun
By BabyMo
My family has enjoyed Elephant and Piggie for several years. We own most of the books, and we pre-ordered My New Friend Is So Fun back in December.This installment of the series focuses on Gerald, and brings back the Snake character from Can I Play Too? When Gerald finds out that Piggie is playing with her new friend Brian Bat, he is very excited. But then slowly, Gerald begins to worry that Piggie and Brian might be having too much fun together. Gerald and Snake (who is Brian’s best friend) imagine themselves being replaced.I love Gerald-centric books because they really showcase the elephant at his neurotic best. Gerald manages to get himself into a frenzy, but it is all for naught: Piggie would never abandon her best friend. The ending is quite sweet, and solidifies the message that people can have multiple friends.I found this book to be especially relevant to our own lives because one of my girls has trouble with the concept that friends can play with other people. She and her best friend are reluctant to play with other children. This book presents friendship in a fun and engaging manner.The illustrations are charming. Mo Willems gives his characters a broad emotional range, and this adds to the humor value of the story. The illustrations appear on a plain white background, so the emphasis is on body language and facial expressions. I have two children on the autism spectrum, so having well defined body language and facial expressions helps us have conversations about how a character is thinking.Elephant and Piggie books are great for reading out loud with a beginning reader. There is no descriptive prose; the characters communicate via speech bubbles. The language is fairly simple, and words/phrases are often repeated.I would absolutely recommend My New Friend Is So Fun. We just got this book yesterday, and it has already been read multiple times. The book is 57 pages long, but there are only a couple of lines per page, so it is a quick read.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful.
Good, not great
By frknhippie
My daughter and I love Gerald and Piggie and own ALL the books. In her words, this one was "short". Lengthwise I think it is about the same as the rest, but I think she perceived it as short because it seemed a little short on substance. There is a good moral to the story and a twist at the end like always, but not a lot of laughs in this one. I know these books are meant to be simple and generally that's what makes them good, so maybe she is just outgrowing them :-(. For reference she is 5 and her favorites are Elephants Cannot Dance and I Will Surprise My Friend. All in all while it isn't our favorite, it is a must read for Gerald and Piggie fans!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.Another winner for Mo Willems with a story that addresses new friends.
By Bob Walch
When a child has a "best friend" it doesn't take long before another youngster can upset the apple cart by arriving on the scene. This splendid book addresses what happens when suddenly a "new best friend" arrives on the scene. As always Mo Willems handles the potential angst ridden event with both humor and understanding. Bravo Mo!I'm setting this one aside for my granddaughter so we can both sit down and read this book together when she is a bit older. She'll love the story and we can perhaps discuss the situation as well.Book provided by the publisher.
