It's Only Stanley

"Fun—just plain fun. (Picture book. 6-8)"

PreS-Gr 2--Agee applies his trademark humor to a wacky new picture book, featuring Stanley, a beagle whose odd nocturnal activities keep his family from sleeping. The single-minded canine drives the Wimbledons crazy one night, howling at the moon, fixing the oil tank, repairing an old TV, and making catfish stew, before finally revealing his master plan. Written in verse, the text serves up plenty of laughs, though a few rhymes seem a bit forced ("It was late as it can get, /When Wanda heard a buzzing noise/That made her all upset."). Agee's signature cartoon style is ideal for the narrative, and the expressions of the various characters, from the endearingly eccentric, steadfast Stanley to the beleaguered Wimbledons, are simple yet endlessly entertaining. The responses of the put-upon family cat in particular will provoke plenty of giggles (for instance, it's seen slurping at the catfish stew on a spread, then turning green on the following one). Sound effects ("SPLISH SPLASH," "KAPOW!") add to the zany humor, making this one perfect for read-alouds. The out-of-this-world but amusing conclusion is appropriately odd and surprising. Agee knows what his young readers want--plain silliness--and he delivers. Hilarious.--Mahnaz Dar, School Library Journal

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Stanley the beagle is a diehard fixer-upper, and for some reason he likes doing noisy chores in the middle of the night. One by one, he wakes up every member of the alliteratively named Wimbledon family, from parents Wilma and Walter to their four children. Agee (Terrific) establishes a rhythmic word-and-picture formula in which Walter goes downstairs on six separate occasions, checks on Stanley (always in a wordless spread), and reports back to his restless family: "The Wimble- dons were sleeping./ It was later than before./ When Wendy heard a clanking sound, / Below her bedroom floor./ 'That's very odd, ' said Walter./ Then they heard another clank!/ 'It's only Stanley, ' Walter said./ 'He fixed the oil tank.' " Visual hints suggest that the industrious dog has more on his mind than home improvement, and rereadings shed light on Stanley's master plan to transform the Wimbledons' steeply pitched Victorian house into a rocket. As in Milo's Hat Trick, Agee appeals to connoisseurs of the absurd, and he shapes ridiculous developments into a tightly composed and satisfying picture book. Ages 5-8. Agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. (Mar.)

Copyright 2015 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Praise for It's Only Stanley

A Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor Book
Washington Post Best Children's Books of 2015
Boston Globe Best Books of 2015
Booklist Editors' Choice 2015
A Horn Book Fanfare Book
Huffington Post Best Picture Books of 2015 (Winner: Funniest)

"Delightful."—The Boston Globe

"[A] superbly absurd tale . . . The rhyming text is natural and paced for surprise. And the droll watercolors handle facial expressions well from aggravation to awe to admiraton."—The San Francisco Chronicle

* "Agee and his simple, droll watercolors return with a work that manages to be absurdist, alarming, and—just when you least expect it—poignant. . . . Very strange, and very, very wonderful."—Booklist, starred review

* "Agee appeals to connoisseurs of the absurd, and he shapes ridiculous developments into a tightly composed and satisfying picture book."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Fun—just plain fun."—Kirkus

"Agee knows what his young readers want—plain silliness—and he delivers. Hilarious."—School Library Journal