Waiting Is Not Easy! by Mo Willems
1. Bibliography
Willems, Mo. Waiting Is Not Easy! New York: Hyperion
Books for Children, 2014. ISBN 142319957X
2. Plot Summary
Piggie has a surprise for Gerald the
Elephant but it is not easy to wait for a surprise. Even though Piggie assures Gerald that it
will be worth the wait, Gerald gets frustrated and is not sure the surprise is
worth the wait. Right when Gerald is sure the long wait was all for naught,
Piggie shows him a surprise that is delightful and well worth the long wait.
Then, Gerald tells Piggie of a delight he would like to share and Piggie says,
“I cannot wait.”
3. Critical Analysis
These two characters are friendly and
predictable to children. Gerald the
anxious and frustrated elephant and Piggie the happy, smiling Pig are repeated
in story after story with the predictability that children adore. Their predictability allows the situations to
be expected to young children. Children
know that something will occur that will bother Gerald but that things will
always get resolved by the end of the story.
The meaning of the story, that somethings are worth the wait no matter
how hard it is to wait, is easily grasped by children while entertaining them
with Gerald and Piggie’s fun reactions to the situation.
Mo Willems graphics help tell the
story. Gerald is gray, as is his word
balloon. This is fitting to Gerald’s
‘gray’ attitude on life. Piggie is pink,
as is his word balloon. His disposition
is ‘pink’. He is ‘in the pink’, so to
speak. Further, Gerald word balloon
crushes Piggie when he Groans very loadly showing in an animated form how
Gerald’s words and attitude make Piggie feel.
The characters are standing in a void of nothingness, making the waiting
feel all the more boring. However, when
the surprise does come, it fills the page, adding to the wonder of the shared
gift.
4. Review Excerpts
From School Library Journal, “This original story is about friendship,
but it also offers insights into human emotions.”
From Booklist (starred review), “Accessible, appealing, and full of authentic
emotions about what makes friendships tick, these titles (Elephant and Piggie
Series) will put a contemporary shine on easy reader collections.”
From Common Sense Media, “The title alone automatically connects with
kids: WAITING IS NOT EASY! – especially in Elephant’s case, where you have no
idea what you’re waiting for.”
From Kirkus Review, “A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve
by two favorite friends.”
5. Connections
Gather more Elephant and Piggie
Series books by Mo Willems such as:
There is a Bird on Your Head (winner of
the Theodor Seuss Geisel Medal) ISBN 1423106865Are Your Ready to Play Outside? (winner of the Theodor Seuss Geisel Medal) ISBN 1423113470
We Are in a Book! (a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor book) ISBN 1423133080
Gather other Mo Willems books,
outside the Elephant and Piggie Series, such as:
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! (a Caldecott
Honor book) ISBN 078681988XKnuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale (a Caldecott Honor book) ISBN 0786818700
Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity (a Caldecott Honor book) ISBN 1423102991
Gather other children’s books that
feature friendship such as:
Lobel,
Arnold. Frog and Toad series ISBN 0062292587Steig, William. Amos & Boris ISBN 031253566X
Hoban, Russell Illustrated by Lillian Hoban. Best Friends for Frances ISBN 0060838035
Use as part of a unit on emotions.
Other books to use in the series include:
Curtis, Jamie Lee Illustrated by
Laura Cornell. Today I Feel Silly: And
Other Moods That Make My Day ISBN 0060245603Mulcahy, William. Zach Gets Frustrated ISBN 1575423901
Silver, Gail Illustrated by Christiane Kromer. Steps and Stones: An Ahn’s Anger Story ISBN 1935209876
Use in a science unit for studying
the stars and constellations
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