Do Not Eat the Game!

by Matthew McElligott

Overview

Learning to play by the rules has never been so much fun! This picture book told through a game board is the perfect read-along for family game nights.

To play this game, you will need a friend—but what if your friend is a monster? With each player's next turn, the competition is fierce, and the action spills off the game board. Learning how to play well with others—taking turns, playing fair, and being a good loser—has never been so fun or inventive. Win or lose, Do Not Eat the Game! will inspire readers to unplug and enjoy doing something fun together.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781524767242
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	05/19/2020
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	10.25(w) x 10.25(h) x 0.35(d)
Lexile:	AD430L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Matthew McElligott is the author of many books for children, including the Mad Scientist Academy series, Even Monsters Need Haircuts, and the Benjamin Franklinstein series. He lives outside of Albany, New York, with his wife, their pets, and a bunch of friendly, colorful monsters who visit him at night to play games and tell him what to draw in his books.
matthewmcelligott.com

Editorial Reviews

"By the amicable ending, readers have discovered the basics of fair play: abiding by the rules, waiting your turn, respecting your competitors, winning (and losing!) gracefully, and, per the titular mandate, abstaining from conspicuous consumption. This book requires two or more readers—the more participants, the merrier." —Kirkus Reviews

"Ultimately, this is a cleverly zany take on how difficult forming friendships can be." —Booklist

“Though the monsters are rowdy, they look ready to cuddle. . . . Viewers are sure to wish they could stampede around with their own monster friends.” —The Bulletin

From the Publisher

2020-02-18
Board games, much like playtimes, take two or more players to make everything go right.

Schoolkids need a helping hand as they move from solo to social play—especially in a screen-oriented world—and McElligott here guides them along. Illustrated in a game board–style layout and written in the imperative style of game instructions, this clever book externalizes kids’ worst playtime impulses in the form of literal monsters. Readers first encounter a small child laden with a big, multicolored game box. When the family’s gray terrier wanders out of the room, the kid lets a pink, furred monster in through the window to serve as a substitute playmate. Things begin well enough, but, as a crowd of monsters accumulates and overwhelms the protagonist, the loyal pup returns to scare them off. Unfortunately, the furry fiends abscond with the game board, then refuse to give it back. Undaunted, the enterprising kid handcrafts a decoy game that distracts the thieving horde with explicitly naughty directives—throwing pieces, munching the board, and so on—enabling the retrieval of the board. Once the monsters realize good fun is contingent on good sportsmanship, they apologize and rejoin the game. By the amicable ending, readers have discovered the basics of fair play: abiding by the rules, waiting your turn, respecting your competitors, winning (and losing!) gracefully, and, per the titular mandate, abstaining from conspicuous consumption.

This book requires two or more readers—the more participants, the merrier. (Picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews