If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Joffe Numeroff illustrated by Felicia Bond

One of my childhood favorite books was If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, therefore, I was excited to see if this book held up to my high expectations. Luckily, I was not disappointed.

The very hungry moose was given a muffin. However, if you give a moose a muffin, he is going to keep asking for a lot more. The moose is an extremely impulsive yet fun character who has good intentions. How did I draw these conclusions? The illustrations combined with certain requests the moose makes.

Felicia Bond (the illustrator) seems to have carefully considered her portrayal of the moose. The moose's body language is friendly and he appears to be smiling in almost every picture. As I looked at the pictures, I couldn't help but feel as though the moose was kind and considerate.

Laura Joff Numeroff (the author) appears to have put some thought into what requests the moose makes that reveal a lot about the character himself. Of course, the moose seems a little demanding at times. However, I never had any negative feelings towards the character because he displayed numerous positive behaviors that readers, especially children, can learn from. For example, the moose tries to help the little boy and takes responsibility for his actions. When he notices the button is loose on a sweater he borrows, he fixes it. If he needs some help, he asks for the materials he needs. When he makes a mess, he cleans it up. These connections I have gathered may seem to be a stretch, but I think they are some redeeming qualities the moose possesses. While he may be impulsive and ask for a lot, they reveal that the moose means well.

Maybe I am a little biased because of my childhood love (which still exists) regarding If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, but I believe this is a book that young children would enjoy reading or being read to. While they may need someone to point out that the moose is picking up his mess, helping the little boy, and asking not demanding for certain things he wants, I believe that regardless of this children would be entertained.