Pete's A Pizza

Pete’s a Pizza
written and illustrated by William Steig. 1998. Hardcover. New York: HarperCollins.

Author/Illustrator Website: none

Media: watercolor

Audience: 3 years and up

Awards and Honors: Charlotte Zolotow Award Honor Book, ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice, IRA/CBC Children's Choice, ALA Notable Children’s Book, Bulletin Blue Ribbon (The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books), Publishers Weekly Best Book

Annotation:
Pete is in a bad mood, until his dad cheers him up with a silly game.

Personal Reaction:
Pete is in a bad mood- he stuck in the house and can’t go play ball with his friends because it’s raining outside. When Pete’s dad notices his son’s mood, he decides to have some fun by pretending to make him into a pizza. Pete’s dad stretches him “this way and that”, tosses him in the air, lays him on the table and pretends to put toppings on him. Pete plays along until he gets tickled, which causes him to giggle and run. By the time their game is done, the sun has come out and Pete can go out to play. This book is good silly fun for kids, and the loving father-son relationship is an excellent model. Too often in books for young children, it is the mother-child relationship that gets all the attention.