Boy Who Cried Bigfoot!

Description: Ben has so often tried to convince people he has seen Bigfoot that when a real sasquatch arrives and borrows his bicycle, no one comes to see if Ben is telling the truth. Full color.

Brief description: Scott Magoon has illustrated many critically acclaimed picture books, including the New York Times bestselling Rescue & Jessica by Jessica Kensky and Patrick Downes, which received a Schneider Family Book Award; Straw by Amy Krouse Rosenthal; and Misunderstood Shark by Ame Dyckman. He is the author-illustrator of Breathe, which was named a Kirkus Reviews Best Read Aloud and a Best Book of the Year by the HuffPost and Chicago Public Library. Scott lives in the Boston area with his wife and two sons. Visit him online at ScottMagoon.com.

Review Quotes: Magoon retells "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" in a book whose suspenseful, funny pictures and surprise narrator trump its familiar plot. "This is the story of my friend Ben and how we first met," says an offstage speaker, referring to a brown-haired boy. Ben "liked to tell stories," and readers see him at a forest's edge, alleging Bigfoot sightings to his weary parents, unbelieving sister, and neighborhood friends. Ben's small dog acts as a barometer for Ben's fibs, its expression going from tetchy to angry and then jolted by the "crick!" of a twig in the woods. "I didn't normally talk to a Littlefoot," explains the now-visible narrator, a towering Sasquatch. Ben looks on in shock while his dog merrily joins the creature for a spin on Ben's bike. Magoon (Big Mean Mike) sets events some decades in the past, giving Ben an antique bike, vintage clothing, and old-fashioned camera and video equipment. While there's still an emphasis on the importance of being honest, it's clear that Magoon also sees value in Ben's perseverance and sense of showmanship.-- "Publishers Weekly"