The Surprise

K-Gr 2–A guinea pig wearing a judo outfit is Kit’s surprise birthday present. When Kit leaves her apartment to go to school, the new pet, also known as the Surprise, finds her differences are being judged and are creating a disparaging conversation among the other pets in the household; Dora a cat, Paul a parrot, and Bob a hard-of-hearing pug. The established pets quickly label her as odd and ignore her. The Surprise, wanting to fit in, tries to copy the other pets in their appearance, style, and physical abilities only to find her efforts cause her to be blown out of the apartment’s window by an inconvenient gust of wind. Luckily, she is rescued by a sympathetic neighbor and oddball herself, Emily Brookstein. The two spend the day together and the Surprise discovers that being an oddball can be a good thing. Emily returns the new pet to Kit when school is over and the Surprise learns she has been given the name Maud. Maud is summarily accepted by the other pets and teaches them judo. This simple story of rejection then acceptance is sweet but predicable. Fox’s illustrations boasting a soft watercolor-like palette are complex and unassuming simultaneously. Her characters are expressive, while the setting is filled with delightful detail and energy.