What If the Shark Wears Tennis Shoes? - Hardcover

Morris, Winifred

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689315872 ISBN 13: 9780689315879

Publisher: Atheneum, 1990

Synopsis

Stephen's nighttime fear materializes, a shark that gets all the way upstairs and into his room to try to eat him, but Stephen has an alternative suggestion.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Young Stephen's bedtime fear that a shark will come and eat him is not eased by his mother's repeated reassurances; sure enough, later that night a shark pulls its way up the stairs, dragging a jug of milk and a bag of sugar behind it. Although he is terrified, Stephen asks, " 'What are you going to do with all of that?' " The shark snarls, " 'You think boys are tender? You think boys are sweet? The only way I can choke them down is with lots of milk and sugar.' " Stephen quickly suggests an alternative diet: breakfast cereal. The shark becomes a delighted, if messy, vegetarian. In Lewin's fluid, thick-lined watercolors, the shark is huge, toothy, scowling--and not particularly scary (maybe it's the sneakers). The text's rhythmic structure, punctuated by a refrain that will have readers chanting along--" 'You ask too many questions. Where do you get such silly ideas?' "--accentuates the story's humor. A fresh, funny reworking of the familiar "nighttime anxieties overcome" theme. --John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly

Stephen is afraid to close his eyes at bedtime, even though his mother assures him that "Nothing can hurt you here in your bed." But the fearful boy asks, "What if a shark comes? What if he eats me?," and proceeds to create a string of hypothetical situations, all humorously depicted in Lewin's cartoon-like pictures. He imagines a menacing shark--with stylish driving gloves--offering him a ride in a stolen Ferrari; consulting a map and compass to locate the boy's house; and--resourcefully wearing tennis shoes so he won't make noise--using a pick and a rope to climb the stairs to Stephen's room. Sure enough, shortly after his mother bids him goodnight, the boy has a visitor: a hungry shark in tennis shoes searching for a boy to eat. The quick-thinking Stephen manages to suggest an alternate entree. Morris's playfully absurd look at nighttime fears may help some children put theirs in perspective. At the very least, youngsters will chuckle over Stephen's nonsensical notions. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Atheneum
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0689315872
• ISBN 13: 9780689315879
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Lewin Betsy