SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL
Gr 2-5–In Harper’s newest chapter book, the shindig is on its way! In the woods, Blue Jay passes an urgent message to Mouse who scurries to the top of the forest’s tallest tree and sets a personal-best yelling record as she shouts, “THE SHINDIG IS COMING!” The guesses fall all over the place as the woodland creatures wonder aloud, what is a shindig? The mystery is seemingly solved—a shindig is a party with friends and sweets!—then Blue Jay arrives and brings chaotic news again. This energetic book is filled with examples of friendship, helping one another, positivity, and playful adventure. Big, brightly colored, kid-friendly pictures fill practically every page. Harper’s vivid line-art illustrations are laugh-out-loud funny; characters yell, jump, run, swoop, and faint through spirals of large, dynamic text and beautiful colors and textures. The visual components make it easy for chapter book readers to follow along.
VERDICT An enjoyably silly title that would be a welcome addition to a library’s beginning chapter books collection; a recommended purchase.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“The Shindig is coming!” Mouse exclaims 112 times as she runs down the hill, causing curious forest animals to gather and call a meeting about her pronouncement—though none of them, including Mouse, knows what a Shindig actually is. At first there are complaints (“meetings are so looooong and boring”) but everyone attends, mostly because Stan the chicken baked honey cakes. The animals discuss the possible meaning of the word, wondering if it’s a scary swampy thing or possibly a very large kitty with super soft paws. All of the excitement causes Opossum to faint (for the first of many times), but thankfully Bear arrives and looks up the word in his dictionary: a Shindig is a party! The animals are relieved—except for Opossum, who is out cold, and baby Beaver, who’s unclear on what a party is. They all start to prepare until the blue jay alerts them his call about the shindig was not an invitation but a warning. The text, at times ornate and stylized or framed within the imagery, marries and blends with illustrations that sing from page to page, as brightly hued full-bleed images juxtapose with single-color pages, some featuring intricate borders, others bold or sparse. Colorfully clad with creatively patterned, black-and-white fur, each cartoony animal is expressive and a little silly, adding to the humor of the story. This early chapter book could work well as a longer classroom readaloud for elementary students or to enjoy at home. Harper’s latest is a joyful, hilarious romp from beginning to end that feels like a shindig in and of itself.
Publisher’s Weekly
Shorts-wearing Mouse has big—potentially alarming—news for her fellow woodland inhabitants: there’s going to be a shindig in the forest. The announcement sends fearful Opossum into the first of many preemptive swoons and reveals that no one knows what a shindig is, though there is speculation that it might involve a “GIANT KITTY versus SWAMPY GREEN THING.” Overbearing, dictionary-toting Bear enters the fray, and informs the group that “SHINDIG is just a fancy word for PARTY,” which impels Mouse and her peers to rejoice (“A party is like a meeting, but it’s fun”). When a blue jay flies by to repeat the titular phrase—to which Bear roars, “We got the invitation!”—the bird delivers another faint-worthy missive: “That wasn’t an invitation... that was a warning.” Though the narrative arc often plays second fiddle to over-the-top characterizations and sly zingers about finicky group dynamics and oversize egos, Mericle (I Cannot Draw a Bicycle) packs the pages with mischievous typography and graphic elements that flirt with midcentury modern design, folk art, and psychedelia, making for a freewheeling chapter book party. Ages 6–10.
Kirkus Review
Is the Shindig a soiree? A creature? A warning? Mysteries abound in this oddball chapter book.
Mouse runs into the forest shouting at the top of her lungs, “THE SHINDIG IS COMING!” The other animals immediately gather for an important meeting, but they soon realize that nobody knows what a shindig is—not even Mouse, who heard the news from the blue jay. The others speculate wildly until Bear informs them that a shindig is a kind of party. All is well and good until the blue jay arrives and makes it clear that his announcement wasn’t an invitation but a warning. Throughout the book, Harper makes unexpected choices, as when the narrative switches its point of view among three characters in sections subtitled “What Mouse Heard,” “What Bear Said,” and “What Opossum Missed.” Opossum drifts between consciousness and unconsciousness (she’s prone to fainting when danger arises), making the end of the book a puzzle to decipher. And thanks to its mysterious open-ended finale, young readers may come away with more questions than answers. Meanwhile, Harper peppers the pages with meticulously detailed illustrations, rife with intricate linework and eye-catching typography. It’s a singularly beautiful book, if strange to its core.
Evocative and mysterious, this book frustrates even as its artwork enthralls. An intriguing head-scratcher.