Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Don't Want to Go!
Picture Book
For ages 5 to 7
Candlewick, 2010 ISBN: 978-0763650919
Lily’s mother has the flu and she is too ill to get out of bed. Lily’s father has to go to work and since Lily is too young to stay home without an adult keeping an eye on her, her father calls a friend, Melanie, who agrees to look after Lily for the day. Lily is not at all happy about this arrangement. She announces very firmly, “Don’t want to go!”
Dad manages to get a reluctant Lily to Melanie’s house, and after he says goodbye, he goes to work. Lily is determined not to like being at Melanie’s house but then she meets Ringo, a dog who seems to like her, and she can’t help laughing when baby Sam tries to play peekaboo with her.
Lily still tries to be standoffish, but when Melanie invites her to glue pictures into a scrapbook, Lily agrees to help, and at lunch time Lily gets to feed Sam, which is messy but fun. Maybe being at Melanie’s house won’t be that bad.
This delightful picture book perfectly captures the kind of mood a little child can get into when he or she has to do something new and unfamiliar. The most common reaction is for the child to say “NO!” Children will enjoy seeing how Lily, bit by bit, starts to enjoy herself, and they will laugh when they get to the clever and very true-to-life ending.
