Shelf Awareness--What's Up, Maloo?

PB Review: What's Up, Maloo?

What's Up, Maloo? by Genevieve Godbout (Tundra Books, 40p., ages 3-7, 9780735266643)

On a good day, "no other kangaroo can hop like Maloo!" But in this endearing, approachable look at dealing with sadness, readers will understand that bad times happen, too. When all looks bleak, with the right kind of help, it's entirely possible to turn things around.

When the story begins, Maloo, a cheerful-looking kangaroo in bright yellow overalls, hops through a field of pink flowers: "One hop. Two hops. Three hops." But then the hopping stops: "Hop?" Maloo, no longer cheerful, takes "One step. Two steps. Three steps" to a gopher friend's house. When cake doesn't lift Maloo's spirits, the pair goes in search of another friend. But neither crocodile's water toys nor koala's many fans can chase away Maloo's gloom. "Let us help you, Maloo," gopher, crocodile and koala all say. The caring friends walk and talk and, most importantly, stick together, until they find a way to help (literally) bring back Maloo's hop.

The deceptively simple storyline in What's Up, Maloo? belies an important message about the healing power of friendship. Maloo's companions show their respect for the kangaroo's feelings and, when Maloo is ready, their caring attention pays off. Genevieve Godbout's (When Santa Was a Baby) earthy color palette and soft textures give the work a soothing air, and her expressive pastel and colored-pencil illustrations clearly describe the emotions of her characters; Maloo's posture sags and a dark fog hovers around the kangaroo's head until the final pages, when ("hop-hop-hurray!") the friends' gentle encouragement pays off and Maloo's spirits lift. A tribute to the benefits of showing up and simply being there, What's Up, Maloo? demonstrates how the very best of friends can make a sad day hoppier, one step at a time. --Lynn Becker, blogger and host of Book Talk, a monthly online discussion of children's books for SCBWI.

Discover: Hopping is the perfect metaphor to illustrate a state of mind as gloomy Maloo's friends repeatedly try to lift the kangaroo's spirits in Genevieve Godbout's picture book.