Loopy By Aurore Jesset; illustration by Barbara Korthues

Loopy
By Aurore Jesset; illustration by Barbara Korthues
NorthSouth; $16.95
24 pp.; ISBN-13: 978-0735821750

Review by Amy Brozio-Andrews

In Aurore Jesset's debut picture book, a young child worries that the worst will happen when his favorite stuffed bunny, Loopy, is left behind at the doctor's office that day. He hears the typical mom advice, to find another toy to sleep with, but just like every other kid in the same situation, that's an unacceptable answer.

Wound up with worry, the child's imagination runs wild. He worries what might happen if another kid takes Loopy home. He worries about the fact that Loopy might have to stay overnight with the office ghosts. The child is so full of concern for his friend that he decides to risk it all and go rescue Loopy himself. Until he begins to worry that he might get lost… or run into a giant… The tension escalates until Loopy is unexpectedly returned just before bedtime, and all is suddenly right with the world.

The child and his perspective in Aurora Jesset's book is spot on -- the point of view is pitch-perfect and kids will totally be able to relate to the child's panic and horror at realizing Loopy was left at the doctor's office. Kids are also likely to appreciate the child's resourcefulness as he decides to go get Loopy himself, instead of leaving his beloved bunny to fend for himself.

Considering that this is a children's picture book with a very small number of words, Jesset ratchets up the tension skillfully; my young readers were quite impatient to keep turning pages and find out what happens next. Even parents will feel that pang of familiar panic as they read it so real is this picture book-child's angst.

The little boy's imagination running away with him is a mix of bravado and fear tempered by resourcefulness. But the child's worst-case horrors are muted by Barbar Korthues' gentle and fluid artwork. For example, the child worries that the bunny will have to see the doctor's office ghost, which sounds scary, but Korthues' ghosts look pretty benign. Through it all, the other stuffed animals and dolls express concern, their moods and feelings reflected in facial expressions and body language. Korthues' artwork lends the book a sweetness and simplicity that's in perfect keeping with the story.

Loopy makes for a great bedtime story, one with drama and mystery, and a satisfyingly happy ending.