Author(s): Claire Messer

Picture | Thinking & Feeling

Have you ever had a grumpy day and not known why? Penguin is having a grumpy day like that. No matter what he does, he just can't shake it! Sometimes the only thing left to do is wash the grumpy day away and start over. The simple text and lively illustrations are the perfect cure for even the grumpiest of days.

Messer's debut is both a useful lesson in beating a cantankerous mood and an elegant example of traditional printmaking, made appealingly up-to-date against stretches of white.--New York Times Book Review

Spare linoleum-print illustrations with lots of white space keep viewers' eyes trained on our protagonist as he humorously grumps and stomps (we're laughing at him, not with him) and then visibly chills out (his eyebrows give us all we need to gauge his moods).--Horn Book

STARRED REVIEW! Messer has arrived at a fine combination here: few words and images, but not too few, and well-chosen to pave the way out of the grumps. The artwork possesses substance and delicacy. Really well turned, with balance, momentum, and all the right notes.--Kirkus Reviews starred review

STARRED REVIEW! Penguin's ability to bring himself to a more content and optimistic place without any outside or parental help offers concrete, empowering ideas for readers who might be wearing their own grumpy outfits.--Publishers Weekly starred review

STARRED REVIEW! This charming account of handling emotions is a great addition to other children's books about grumpy behavior.--School Library Journal starred review

Author Biography: Claire Messer is a recent graduate of the Cambridge School of Art. She works by hand, using traditional printmaking processes to create her illustrations. She lives in the UK. This is her first book. Claire Messer is a recent graduate of the Cambridge School of Art. She works by hand, using traditional printmaking processes to create her illustrations. She lives in the UK. This is her first book.