Else-Marie and Her Seven Little Daddies - Hardcover

Charbonnet, Gabrielle; Lindenbaum, Pija

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0805017526 ISBN 13: 9780805017526

Publisher: Henry Holt & Co (J), 1991

Synopsis

Else-Marie has seven little daddies instead of one big one, and she worries how the other children will react when her daddies come to pick her up at afternoon playgroup

About this title

From Kirkus Reviews:

A whimsical Swedish import with a unique premise: Else-Marie has not one but seven identical pint-size daddies who all go to work together, briefcases in hand, read to her at night, and do all the other things daddies do. As long as she's at home with them, Else-Marie finds this perfectly satisfactory; but when Mom has to work overtime so that the daddies are delegated to pick her up at playgroup, Else-Marie suddenly sees her unusual parents as she imagines others will, and is filled with anxiety: Will the daddies be chased by a neighbor's dog? Will they embarrass her in front of her friends? No problem, it turns out: the other children accept the daddies with careless aplomb. Lindenbaum's auspicious debut story, realistic except for the remarkable daddies, is developed with logic and good humor and told in a dry, straightforward, amusing style. Even better are her lively illustrations, in which the unusual family is realized in comical detail; the daddies, like an orderly Cub Scout troop, are delightful. Adults who couldn't accept Stuart Little may worry about Mom; for anyone else, an offbeat treat. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal:

Kindergarten-Grade 2-- Else-Marie has seven little daddies. They are about 16 inches high. They do all the regular things associated with fathers--go off to work, come home on the bus, eat supper, and read the paper. Indeed, their life is so normal that Else-Marie does not in the least regard her situation as peculiar. However, when her mother announces that she has to work overtime and that Else-Marie's daddies will pick her up at playgroup, the child begins to worry that her playmates may find it strange that she has several little daddies instead of one big one. Au contraire , her friends don't seem to mind a bit. All through the story readers will search for a logical explanation, some missing puzzle piece regarding Else-Marie's bizarre situation. However, no answers are provided, no hints are given. This lack of resolution makes for an ultimately unsatisfying story, with awkward attempts at humor. The illustrations, done in a cartoon style, portray rather unappealing characters with bulging eyes and stringy hair, and the colors are murky. --Alexandra Marris, Rochester Public Library, NY
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co (J)
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0805017526
• ISBN 13: 9780805017526
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 1