100 books like Are You a Cheeseburger?

Lucy, the bear, is practicing her twirls in the forest when she notices she is being watched, by a boy who squeaks! Lucy thinks he is “the cutest thing in the world!” and begs her mother to let her keep him. Her mother tells her that “children make terrible pets!” but eventually relents. Lucy and Squeak do everything together but the boy is practically impossible to potty-train, ruins the furniture, makes terrible messes, and then…he disappears! When Lucy finally finds him, she realizes that some creatures make terrible pets. Then again, perhaps a…? 

Peter Brown’s colour drawings are cute and funny; this book definitely made me laugh out loud. What an interesting change of perspective about humans and pets! 

I liked the surprise ending too.

One of the best things about this book is the fabulous illustrations! Bold, bright, and very silly, they totally capture the essence of this very funny story about a little girl who desperately wants a dog. She is overjoyed with the ‘dog’ she gets for her birthday except, he won’t do anything dogs are supposed to do! He won’t come when he’s called, won’t go for walks, doesn’t like other dogs, etc. However, he is very good at climbing trees, (but won’t come down), likes to play in the fish water…doesn’t bark at the mailman, doesn’t have accidents on the floor… maybe that’s because this dog is actually a…cat! 

I definitely understand why this book is a five-time award winner!

I loved this sweet, funny, feel-good book with its unusual, intelligent characters. Sophia is a very determined girl (with a wonderful Afro ponytail) who won’t stop pursuing her One True Desire—to have a giraffe! Her father (businessman), her mother (lawyer), her uncle (politician), and her grandmother (who is very strict), all have excellent reasons for saying no to all of her arguments, including the fact that she uses too many words. (Teaching her 3 new words along the way.) Despite compelling slideshows, graphs, pie charts, and foot rubs, she has no success, until…

The illustrations are delightful, colourful, and comical, bringing the characters to life, including the hard-won Giraffe. If you are a word lover like me, you will also love this book!

Harry really wants a dog! Alas, his dad’s nose is sensitive from working in a pepper factory; dogs make him sneeze! He gets Harry a chameleon and it’s ok; it changes colours, but doesn’t move much and is hard to see. So…Harry decides to dream a dog! The two have the best time together until one day… 

I really relate to this story because dogs make me sneeze too! I love Harry’s great imagination and the father’s sympathy for his son, going along with the existence of Waffle, the dream dog. The illustrations are whimsical, beautiful, and hilarious. I think you will be delighted with this book, maybe as much as me! 

PS. The author is a ten-time Emmy Award winner and former head writer for Sesame Street!

Dewey Bob is a cute raccoon who turns trash into treasure and is ostrazied by the other raccoons for being so neat and sweet. I identified with Dewey and his quiet, artistic, and dramatic qualities, and rejoiced at his finding the perfect friend at the end of the story. He is also finally accepted by the other animals, but Dewey already loves himself!

This story is a great exploration of FOMO for young children.

Two best friends are split apart when one moves a long way away. Herman the bear feels increasingly left behind and obsolete when he reads Henry the racoon’s correspondence (actual letters pasted into the book) describing new friends in his sunny new home. Herman feels too miserable to write back; when he finally does, deep snow has set in and the post office has closed for the winter.

So he sets off into the swirling blizzard to deliver the letter himself—up steep cliffs and frozen waterfalls, over creaking crevices and the tallest mountains, all gorgeously painted by Percival in a perfect balance of three-dimensionality and looseness. At the end, the pictures do the talking: Herman and Henry are still best friends.

As an animal lover who’s also lived in cities for half my life, I can’t help but love even the critters that typically get the “pest” label. This book’s author and artist are clearly on my side with this charming graphic novel. It’s a book about anthropomorphic raccoons, but it tackles some pretty wonderful social topics—in a quest to dive the perfect dumpster, the characters go up against the specter of corporate food waste.

While a topic like that might sound like a lot for a kid, the book is incredibly playful. I love any book that loves a raccoon, but they definitely get extra points for being anti-capitalist raccoons. I’d read this one with any kid who loves a pop-punk attitude—just keep some snacks on hand for when the critters finally get their garbage. Gardner makes it look tasty!

This is a charming book that I treasured when I was a young reader.

The narrator/author is telling a true story from his childhood about adopting a wild raccoon he named Rascal. It harkens back to a simpler time [also a little warning, he and a friend take the baby raccoons from their nest, which is not cool these days!].

The reader gets to see how smart and mischievous Rascal is and all the adventures the two have together.

I love anything that mixes science and creativity, and this book does this seamlessly. Set in a museum, the story is a real mystery, so kids can collect clues and uncover the secrets.

I also love that there are real science facts and ideas woven into the narrative, so while I’m laughing, I’m also learning (without even realizing 😉).

Going away from mommy and daddy to a new school can be especially difficult and scary for any child (and parent too). This sweet little book helped us with the pre-school transition by creating a new daily tradition. The simple gesture, illustrated by the cute little raccoons in the book, offers comfort to both mother and child and creates something they can look forward to in their daily routine. The story sweetly alleviates the separation anxiety, for both parent and child, that often accompanies starting school or being away from each other for any length of time.