Please is a Good Word to Say

by: Barbara Joosse; Illustrated by Jennifer Plecas

Published by: Philomel

Reviewed by Jamie Driggers

Some words, like please and thank you, you can use to put a smile and a hug in what you say. Other words you can say can make people sad. Words can be used to make others feel better and words that should only be used if you really mean it. And sometimes it is best to just not say anything. Harriet knows these things and she wants to tell your kids all about them.

Barbara Joosse has written another great picture book, this time teaching manners—but not in the stuffy old way. She puts a unique spin on words (imagine that!) so that kids don’t even know they’re learning. They’re just hearing a cute story in which Harriet talks about double-dipping a phone hello. In Please is a Good Word to Say Joosse has accomplished her goal of teaching one rule that really matters: Kindness. And as she does in her prior works like Hot City, and Nikolai, the Only Bear, she shows not only how we are different, but how we are the same.

And, as usual, Jennifer Plecas has artfully illustrated another book in a manner that kids love. Simple. Tasteful. Lively. The wonderful combination of story and illustration will have kids pulling this one off the shelves time and time again.

Author’s Web site: http://www.BarbaraJoosse.com