Peanut & Fifi Have a Ball by Randall de Sève (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Peanut & Fifi Have a Ball by Randall de Sève Deborah Stevenson, Editor de Sève, Randall Peanut & Fifi Have a Ball; illus. by Paul Schmid. Dial, 2013[ 32p] ISBN 978-0-8037-3578-1 $15.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad 4–7 yrs Despite the title, it’s initially only Peanut who has an actual ball, and the little girl is delighted with her new toy (“It was bright blue. And it was special”). Her sister, pigtailed Fifi, yearns for a piece of the action, but grabbing for the ball, begging, and suggesting shared games don’t melt Peanut’s resolve to hang on to her toy. Finally Fifi gets wise and presents an attraction all her own: a seal named Bob, and a planned trip around the world for Bob, Fifi, Peanut, and the ball. The back-and-forth rhythm between Peanut and Fifi (one resisting, the other pushing) is brisk, [End Page 460] and their exchanges are funny as Fifi grows ever more creative in her attempts to make Peanut share her treasure. The story spirals into confusion, however, with the arrival of Bob the seal, and a fakeout ending stops the momentum in its tracks. Additionally, Peanut’s sudden yearning to play with Fifi is a bit puzzling, since it’s never made clear why this pretend game is any more inviting than the others. Schmidt’s art makes the sisters into an adorable pair: strongly graphic digital images involving smooth, thick black outlines and a few slightly smoky planes of color contrast with the ivory backgrounds, and the girls’ poses differentiate them as clearly as their clothing and hair. Kids know both the desire to grab and the desire to withhold, so they’ll relate to both the sisters and have similar tales to tell of their own sharing dramas. Copyright © 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois