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Mommy's Having a Watermelon

Review
By Elizabeth Bird, School Library Journal blog

Zoe Rind has a problem. A big problem. You see, over the summer she was laughing pretty hard and a watermelon seed in her mouth got spit out by accident and landed in her mom's glass. Zoe thought that was hilarious, but didn’t think much about it . . . until mommy started feeling sick. . . . There is clearly only one answer: there’s a watermelon growing in there. Zoe is sick with guilt, but when she tries to talk to her parents about the problem they just end up talking about seeds and how ‘we want to be surprised.’ . . . The art is actually a good complement to the text here. . . . It’s a good book for those kids transitioning from very easy books to early chapter affairs. As for artist Megan Halsey, she has put together a fun style that integrates printmaking, collage, and good old fashioned watercolors. Repeating images, like the question marks that appear faintly in the background at appropriate times, meld together with some of the more realistic images. The result is art that doesn’t just sit morosely but that moves the eye around each page beautifully. It makes the book a pleasure to read. . . . All in all, the book is amusing both from a literary standpoint and an artistic one. I don’t see many easy readers worth reviewing, but Mommy’s Having a Watermelon proves to be the exception to the rule.