A picture book originally published in Argentina explores the contradictory behaviors and feelings that almost all children struggle to make sense of. Petit is a young boy who can be very nice, but not all the time. He’s good when he plays with his dog, but not when he pulls girls’ hair. He’s bad when he tells a lie, but he’s good at telling stories. He takes care of his toys—a good thing—but he doesn’t want to share them—is that so bad? He doesn’t like Gregory at all, but the other day he felt sorry for him. It’s all so confusing! When he realizes that his mother, too, has more than one side to her nature (“Mother is good because she understands and bad when she sends me to bed without dessert”), Petit wonders, “Could it be that it runs in the family?” Author/illustrator Isol deftly uses humor to explore essential questions of childhood in a picture book featuring lighthearted line drawings with a striking, two-tone color scheme. (Ages 4–8)

The Argentinian IBBY National Section was founded in March 1985 and is represented by the Argentine Association of Children and Young Adult Literature (ALIJA). ALIJA is a nonprofit, private organization engaged in promoting research and assessment of quality children’s and young adult books. Since its inception, it has offered writers, illustrators, storytellers, pub lishers, librarians, teachers, experts, and enthusiasts of children’s literature a forum for the exchange of ideas and projects. Every year ALIJA appoints a jury of experts to select the Destacados de ALIJA. These Destacados are the outstanding books, writers, illustrators, and publishing houses that merit the ALIJA awards, presented once a year at the National Book Fair. Other regular ALIJA IBBY activities include nominating Argentine candidates for the IBBY Hans Christian Andersen Awards and for the International IBBY Asahi Award, organizing the International Meeting of Storytellers with the Fundación del Libro and Summa Institute, publishing a Latin American catalog of recommended book titles for children and young people in co operation with CERLALC (Centro Regional para el Fomento del Libro en América Latina y el Caribe), and all national IBBY Latin-American sections and Fundación Sánchez Ruipérez, Spain, ALIJA. In 2004, under the auspices of the Cámara Argentina del Libro, ALIJA published A través del espejo: Libros, lectura y escritura literaria en los libros infantiles y juveniles, and Cómo Incentivar la lectura en nuestros hijos [ Through the Mirror: Books, Reading and Literary Writing in Infantile and Youthful Books, and How to Stimulate Reading in our Children ].

Originally published as Petit, el Monstruo in Spanish by OcéanoSEPComisión Nacional de Libros de Texto Gratuitos México, in 2006. Translated by Elisa Amado.

A witty and wonderfully illustrated book that playfully examines the many ambiguities and contradictions of human behavior through Petit, a good boy when he plays with his dog, but a bad boy when he pulls a girl's hair; good when he takes care of his toys, but very bad when he doesn't want to share themÉ