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Summary
Summary
What would it be like if time went backwards? One unlucky little boy is about to find out!
Otto has just one birthday wish: that his new baby sister Anna had never been born. And it comes true when the days suddenly start moving in reverse. But now, instead of growing up, Otto's growing DOWN. He's getting younger every minute and in danger of disappearing entirely. Can he turn things around before it's too late--for Anna and himself? Brilliant illustrations by the fabulous Scott Magoon capture all the fun of this whimsical tale.Author Notes
"!emit sdrawkcab ni kcuts llits m'I, ottO ekilnU !pleH" Michael Sussman is a clinical psychologist, writer, and musician. He lives in reverse - in notsoB - with his son, Oliver Quinn. This is his first picture book.
Scott Magoon has illustrated numerous picture books, including Ugly Fish (Harcourt Children's Books, 2006), written by Kara LaReau; Luck of the Loch Ness Monster: A Tale of Picky Eating (Houghton Mifflin, 2007), written by Alice Weaver Flaherty; and Hugo and Miles In I've Painted Everything (Houghton Mifflin, 2007), which he himself wrote.Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-A refreshing take on the arrival of a new sibling and the rivalry that frequently follows. As he is about to turn six, Otto becomes a brother. Forced to share toys, time, and, most of all, his birthday spotlight, he wishes that "Anna was never born!" In the time it takes to blow out the candles on his cake, Otto's life is terribly disrupted. He rockets backward toward infancy, and his sister is returned to the hospital. But the idea of reliving baby food, baby talk, and diapers leaves him panic-stricken. Otto must do something, and do it quickly. Exaggerated cartoon art captures his predicament. With humor and poignancy, author and illustrator portray an age-old rite of passage.-Trish Sabini, Ossining Public Library, NY Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
Horn Book Review
Otto's baby sister, Anna, is always the center of attention--even at his birthday party. So as he blows out the six candles on his cake, Otto wishes she was never born. Suddenly, time starts moving backward: Anna is returned to the hospital (hooray!), but Otto himself gets younger and younger (uh-oh!). Amusing illustrations tinged with murky undertones convey Otto's mix of emotions. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
A rash wish turns a boy into a little Benjamin Button. Six-year-old Otto sighs and suffers through the birthday party of his one-year-old sister, Anna. His parents have given her his favorite rattle; when they ask him to blow out Anna's candles and make a wish, he does: that Anna was never born! Uh-oheverything starts going backwards. At kindergarten, Otto wipes paints off a canvas and goes up a slide. On Tuesday, he brings in the garbage; he takes a bath when he's clean. And the toilet...don't ask. Otto's in a panic. He gets younger and younger. Suddenly it's his first birthday, mother shakes his rattle and that gives him an idea. The deadpan drollery of Magoon's cartoon-style illustrations should appeal to adults as well as children, matching the quirkiness of Sussman's premise. Otto's demonstrative lack of enthusiasm as he shakes his rattle for Anna is flat-out hilarious, and his growing consternation as he begins to live his life backward comes across loud and clear. Genuine issue gracefully handled. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Otto is not happy about the arrival of his baby sister. At his sixth birthday party, he blows out the candles and wishes that Anna had never been born. Sure enough, time starts moving backward, and before long, his parents are heading to the hospital (happily, the scene of Anna being returned from whence she came isn't depicted). Soon, however, Otto is regretting his wish, as he unpaints his drawing paper, brings the garbage inside on trash day, and finds going to the bathroom . . . downright disgusting. (This is demurely depicted with Otto on the toilet seat. Horrified.) Worst of all, however, is watching his birthdays roll back until he is just a baby. At the last possible moment, Otto figures out how to restart the clock. There's lots of fun to be had with this Benjamin Button-like concept, and both words and pictures do a good job of mining it. The pen-and-paint artwork, with its bigheaded characters and use of strong shapes and colors, is eye-catching, while the be-careful-what-you-wish-for message comes through loud and clear.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2009 Booklist