A charming whimsical picture book with a very important message: Don’t Trust Fish!
*Don’t Trust Fish by Neil Sharpson and illustrated by Dan Santat. Dial Books for Young Readers, 2025. 40 pages.
- Reading Level: Picture books, ages 0-4
- Recommended For: Ages 0-4
This animal has fur.
This animal is warm-blooded.
This animal feeds her babies milk.
This animal is a MAMMAL.
So begins Don’t Trust Fish. At first, the story seems reminiscent of a classic science book with colorful faux woodcuts of different phyla. The first hint something is up? When the narration blithely asserts “Anything with feathers is a bird. Birds are dead easy.” This is our cue things are about to change. Because FISH cannot be trusted. Or so we are told in increasingly imaginative and histrionic prose. Are fish spying on us? They could be! By the time the narrator triumphantly points out that ships sink at sea -yet another reason not to trust fish- readers realize they are in for a gloriously ridiculous romp.
Sharpson’s hysterical prose is perfectly complimented by Santat’s vibrant illustrations. Readers should not be surprised to find themselves reading and re-reading Don’t Trust Fish until it’s memorized. This particular reader can quote most of it. Perceptive readers will especially appreciate the final surprise in the book’s endpapers. You’ll probably want to go read the whole book again, and you should!
Bottom Line: A brilliantly funny book sure to be appreciated by all ages, this is well worth adding to the picture book library of anyone who loves fish, or has a sense of humor.
*indicates a starred review, the best of the best in its field
Recommended Reading at Redeemed Reader (all in the same vein!)
- Book Review: A Friend for Eddy by Ann Kim Ha
- Book Review: Mr. Wuffles! by David Weisner
- Book Review: Mr. Squirrel and the Moon by Sebastian Meschenmoser
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