I Just Ate My Friend by Heidi McKinnon

Image

Justification

A funny, if simplistic, picture book about hunger and the search for friendship. While a bit simple, it is good for a quick laugh and a fun little plot twist at the end.

Evaluation

Illustrations: The artwork of I Just Ate My Friend is full of lovely bright colors set against a black backdrop. The monsters are cleverly drawn and not at all scary. I liked the drawn in textures that were evocative of hair, making each monster more realistic than cartoonish.

Text: The text is very simple, white set against a black background. I really liked that the illustrations did not interfere with the text or vice versa. There is always blank space around the text (there are stars illustrated from the top to middle of the pages). The text is only dialogue with no actions indicated, which helps drive the plot and reveals the monster's feelings to the reader.

Conclusion

An excellent choice for early readers. Even just reading it for myself was enjoyable despite being meant for children.

Citation

McKinnon, H. (2017). I just ate my friend. New York: Simon & Schuster.