FOUR FUNNY POTATOES!
by Len Foley , illustrated by Len Foley
Some talented spuds and assorted other vegetables, fruits, and carbs take the stage in this counting picture book.
In this genuinely funny story, things get lively in the kitchen late at night when a quartet of potatoes pops out of a bowl to “put on a show!” But wait a minute. Isn’t the fourth member of that group a banana? Indeed, Benny the banana is frustrated that Arnie the dancing potato, Jimmy the potato comic, and Marvin the juggling potato expect him to sing “one potato, two potato, three potato, four,” ignoring his own unique traits. (Other cast members are Sofia the sandwich, a couple of “egg heads” in a frying pan, backflipping grapes, a strongman jelly bean, and more.) When Benny receives validation from an unexpected—and hungry—source, he happily invites everyone to join him in singing his own counting song, even the peanut, the fries, and the meatball. Foley (Sigfried’s Smelly Socks!, 2017, etc.) tells this tall tale about inclusion and the appreciation of differences in simple, mostly rhyming text. The idiosyncratic font, with letters of various sizes and words in an assortment of colors, is the perfect complement to the vibrant, digitally rendered characters: photographs of real food items with added cartoon faces and limbs. The witty, sweet twist ending is the perfect wrap-up.
An amusing kitchen tale that delivers a worthy message about respect and diversity.