Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 01/01/2016 PreS-Gr 1—Alan the alligator fancies himself to be the most fearsome creature in the jungle, but he's hiding a secret that could change his whole image. Every day, he polishes his scales, brushes his scary teeth one by one, and practices his frightening faces in the mirror. Then, he sneaks up on the frogs, monkeys, and parrots and scares them silly. At the end of the day, Alan luxuriates in his victorious scare tactics, but eventually he has to get real with himself; Alan has false teeth! He keeps his secret safe by storing his chompers in a special hiding place where Barry the Beaver eventually finds them by mistake. When Alan wakes up to find his teeth are missing, he attempts to launch his scaring spree as usual but is laughed at by the other animals. This makes him cry. Alan's wails continue through the night, and by morning all of the animals are on board to return his teeth, though they have drafted a few rules for how he can use them moving forward. Vibrant pencil, chalk, and paint illustrations colored digitally are preschool-friendly and maximize the humor in the text by providing little details for readers to delight in, such as Alan's taste in reading materials and his full line of grooming products. The simple yet effective expressions the animals display throughout the story are no doubt inspired by the author's work in animation, which contributes to this story's success as a read-aloud. This strong debut picture book will leave young listeners and librarians alike hungry for the author's next offering. VERDICT A perfect choice for storytime.—Samantha Lumetta, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, OH - Copyright 2016 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 05/01/2016 Alan the alligator spends his days scaring the other jungle creatures with his mouthful of large teeth: “He made the frogs leap off their lily pads, the monkeys tumble from the trees, and the parrots screech in terrible terror.” But he does it all while harboring a big secret—his teeth are false! When Barry the Beaver steals his teeth, Alan hopes that no one will notice, but the other animals screech in laughter. Eventually, they return the teeth on the condition that Alan will stop scaring them, and he instead finds constructive ways to use his teeth. His scaring days are far from over, however: the “BIG, SCARY STORYTELLER” has a surprise coming! Digitally colored illustrations in pencil, chalk, and paint portray Alan as more of a goofball than a menace, while the jungle animals blend into the background—a good precaution with an alligator neighbor. The reformation of a bully is a familiar story, but Alan’s version is nicely told, and the eventual outcome is especially enjoyable. - Copyright 2016 Booklist.