I really wanted to like this book more than I did. The idea of the story is sweet, but the writing is distractingly clunky. It's a story about thinking about others at Thanksgiving. Lines like 'He's so mad but he's sad. He can't even be glad. He can't even smile. I guess I'll stay sad' aren't enjoyable. The rhythm is, at times, is a little 'off' with several extra syllables in matching lines - it makes it a little difficult to read aloud smoothly. (16 syllables then 13 syllables) Similarly, the rhyme often relies on 'near' rhyme (tick/dismissed). The rhyme structure changes frequently - from ABCB to AABAC to AAAA. There is some slightly grating colloquial grammar ('with the day off of school'') which means that I would avoid reading it in a school context.

Is the story itself too hard-hitting for little ones? I don't think so, but I'm a bit torn about it. Basically, Dyno-Mike's family hasn't had a good year and they aren't going to be able to 'do' Thanksgiving this year. Dyno-Mike arrives home to find his mum crying on the couch. Upon hearing that the year has been tough, Dyno-Mike's friends bring around food - happy days. The tone of the story took a sharp downward turn with Dyno-Mike screaming "I think I pooped my pants" after eating, singing and dancing.