Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Flusi, the sock monster
Picture Book
For ages 4 to 6
Kane/Miller, 2004 ISBN: 978-1929132690
Have you ever noticed the way in which socks seem to disappear in the washing machine? Well Maja’s does not have a single matching pair of socks left. Something is happening to her socks during the laundry process, and when Maja puts one of her socks on she finds out what. She gets bitten by Flusi, who is a sock monster. Flusi explains that he loves socks and then he shows her his favorite place in the whole world – the laundry room.
Flusi and Maja quickly become good friends and they spend the rest of the day together. Maja suggests that Flusi should spend the night in her room sleeping in a doll bed, but Flusi is not exactly taken with this idea, and he stumps off in a temper as soon as Maja falls asleep. After all, he is a sock monster and not a doll. Clearly Maja has a lot to learn about sock monsters.
There can’t be many of us who haven’t been afflicted with the missing sock problem, and this story will explain it all in a most satisfactory way. In addition, the author also shows her readers that it is important to remember that one shouldn’t force one’s values on ones friends. You have to take them as they are. In this case, you cannot expect a sock monster to like sleeping in a sissy doll bed. It would be far too demeaning after all. A monster may look cute and fluffy but it is still a monster, and it will want to hold on to its monster identity.
With charming illustrations and a laugh out loud funny story, this is a picture book children will bring out at story time again and again.
