Barnacle Is Bored

March 7, 2016
In a mischievous skit of a story, Geisel Award Honoree Fenske (A Pig, a Fox, and a Box) introduces a dyspeptic barnacle for whom the sea grass is always greener—until it isn’t. Affixed to the underside of a dock, Barnacle has an existence that’s low on mobility and big on routine. “Every day is the same,” he groans. “The tide comes in. I am wet and cold. The tide goes out. I am dry and hot.” Fenske gives Barnacle pale limbs that dangle in the water like idle fingers and a range of grimaces and half-lidded glares. After a dopey-looking yellow fish shows up, it triggers a series of jealous imaginings (“I bet he dives with dolphins. I bet he soars with sailfish”) that abruptly ends with the arrival of a hungry eel—it turns out that being bored beats being lunch. From narration that consists entirely of Barnacle’s mopey monologue to a dockside environment defined by creamy blue water, a bit of sand, and a couple planks, Fenske keeps it simple, deploying his closing jokes with confident comic timing. Ages 3–5. Agent: Carrie Hannigan, Hannigan Salky Getzler Agency.

March 1, 2016
Barnacle longs for a change in routine. A lone, pale barnacle hangs over the blue water, affixed by its hatlike shell to the bottom of a wooden pier. Here it seems to the barnacle that every day is just about the same: "The tide comes IN. // I am WET and COLD. / The tide goes OUT. // I am DRY and HOT." The crustacean watches the world go by, or at least as much of it as is visible from one fixed vantage point. Four appendages wave expressively below an exaggeratedly cartoonish face. Its expression is scowling and grumpy: "I am BORED." When a yellow, polka-dot fish swims by, Barnacle is struck by a thought: "I bet his days are so FUN." Perceptive readers may notice that from this point Barnacle is actually not entirely bored, as the many delights available to this brightly colored fish play out--at least in Barnacle's imagination. Barnacle pictures the sunny, big-eyed fish happily engaged in entertaining, alliterative activities in the pale blue sea: "I bet he DIVES with dolphins. / I bet he SOARS with sailfish." But a reversal in fortune demonstrates that excitement and boredom are all in how a situation is perceived (and also that, as in most of nature, eating or being eaten is the rule). Fenske's open, flat-colored, loose-lined, animated cartoon style and simple dialogue-bubble text in a large, bold font are inviting for new readers. Slight, though silly and amusing. (Picture book. 3-6)

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February 1, 2016

K-Gr 2-This playful book addresses the universal problem of feeling bored while everyone else appears to be having a great time. Barnacle is attached to the bottom of a dock. Life is an endless, repetitive cycle of tides, waves, sun, and darkness. Barnacle envies the exciting life of a passing fish. "Look at this guy. The little polka-dotted show-off. I bet his days are so FUN." Barnacle alliteratively imagines the fish diving with dolphins, soaring with sailfish, and flipping with flounder. But Barnacle isn't the only one eyeing the little fish. As he cavorts, a smirking eel creeps further into view before swallowing the fish whole. Barnacle comically cringes and then grins at readers and announces, "I am not bored." The final page reveals a cutaway into the eel's stomach, where the yellow fish declares, "I am BORED." Barnacle's round eyes and expressive eyebrows create endearing and silly expressions. High-contrast speech bubbles contain one sentence per page. VERDICT A light and accessible read.-Amelia Jenkins, Juneau Public Library, AK

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2016
Preschool-K What better protagonist could there be to illustrate boredom than a sedentary barnacle? In a series of comic illustrations showing the barnacle's conelike head attached to a wooden dock, the grumpy narrator recounts the unvarying dullness of his life. With a crabby expression, he recounts how the tide comes in, the tide goes out; the sun comes up, the sun comes down; and yet he remains, stuck. One day, a flamboyantly colored fish swims into view ( The little polka-dotted show-off ), and the envious barnacle starts to imagine all the freedom and fun the fancy fish must haveuntil a moray eel swallows the fish whole. Suddenly life doesn't seem so boring. The sparseness of the settingrendered in blues, browns, and whiteinduces sympathy for the barnacle, while guest appearances by a sailfish, a finback whale, dolphins, a flounder, and an undulating eel add momentary pops of color. This tale where the seaweed is always greener is an entertaining antidote to boredom.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2016
For Barnacle, "every day is the same. The tide comes IN...The tide goes OUT." When a polka-dotted fish swims past, Barnacle enviously imagines the fun he must have playing with other ocean creatures--until an eel swallows the fish. Barnacle's over-the-top facial expressions and beige coloring perfectly capture his boredom, but the plot (conveyed entirely in reader-addressed speech bubbles) drags.

(Copyright 2016 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)