Grobblechops is a children's book based on a 13th century poet named Rumi's work. A child is in fear of a monster under his bed, but his dad reassures him that the monster might be more friend than foe.

The art style is chaotic and collage-style in nature, and it really makes the story that much more fun. I think Grobblechops will be a fun bedtime story for kiddos who are into monsters (or maybe those who are afraid of monsters, to reassure them that there's nothing to be afraid of!), but no matter why you read it, it is sure to be great fun!

Note: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated in any other fashion for the review and the opinions reflected below are entirely my own. Special thanks to the publisher and author for providing the copy.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

While I wasn't completely in love with the cover, I thought the rest of the book was interesting. The book features a common fear among children, so they can relate. Definitely a unique perspective though.

I was a bit worried about reading this to my three year old granddaughter, but she loved it. She is a monster fanatic and thought the monsters in this book were scary, but obviously not too scary for her. It’s time for bed, but Amir is afraid. What if a monster shows up? His father tries to reassure him, but whatever he says, Amir comes up with another “what-if”. His father is finally able to reassure and calm him so that he can fall asleep. The artwork in this book is amazing. It is a bit frenzied and abstract. The colours are darker and muted showing the moods of Amir and the monsters. I like the message of this story which is to make friends (or peace) with your fears. If you have a child who is afraid of monsters hiding in their room, this would be a great book to share with them. If you have a child like my granddaughter that just loves monsters, this would be a great book. I recommend this one.

This book was beautiful. The illustrations were vibrant and fun. I love the title, when I read it to my 3 year old he thought it was funny. I think this book is well written and anyone and everyone with children can relate to a child not wanting to go to bed and coming up with any excuse to prolong the inevitable!
My son loved this book so I’m looking forward to having it become a part of our bedtime routine. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC for an honest review.

Amir is adamant that he does not want to go to bed and he has a verbal altercation with his dad refusing to go. Dad discovers that his small son is afraid of the dark and even worse, afraid that a monster might come in the night and eat him. Oh my! The poor little guy is very scared.

Dad assures his son that if a monster appears so will he with a fryng pan to shake at him and ward him off. Amir then says:

"But what if the monster has a dad too?"

Dad says in that case he will call in more troops... mom with her huge umbrella and she will flap it right in the monster's face. That will certainly scare him off.

Amir keeps posing more what if questions until finally Dad gives hi m a scenario that appeases his fears and actually puts a smile on his face. Why not be kind and gracious, share your toys and make the monster your friend instead thinking him as your enemy.

Satisfied, Amir picks up his teddy, hops into bed and settles down for the night. Dad peeks his head back around the door and asks if Amir's monster has a name. Sleepily Amir replies that his name is Grobblechops and the he drifts off to Dreamland.

The illustrations are wonderful. They are full of action, detail and emotion. This book is perfect to share at bedtime if your little one is suffering from a bad case of "monsteritis". ( I just made that word up ) It is a lovely segue to spark a conversation about being afraid of the dark and dealing with scary, imagined monsters. It will calm fears and instill comfort and peace at bedtime. I highly recommend this book.

This is such a cute story about a boy who is scared of his monster. The dad takes the opportunity to show him how maybe he should befriend the monster instead. I love the father/son dynamic!

My Thoughts
Amir cannot sleep. Why? That monster, of course!

As Amir finds different reasons to not fall asleep alone in the dark(that monster is reason number one), his clever and patient dad finds an equal number of reasons for Amir to look past his fears and maybe even embrace them(and well, go to sleep!).

Gorgeous colorful illustrations that depict characters truer to their names; with motion and vivacity that brings life to them all – humans, monsters, and toys too. The details in the illustrations add so much to the story told with just the right amount of dialog for a picture book. For instance,

the Rumi poster is a nod to the teller of the original tale
Amir’s teddy bear is a delight to watch across the pages
all those tiny details that make it a normal, lived in home that cleverly yet subtly reflects who and where the characters are (the swim goggles on the bathroom floor, the toys strewn all around, the entryway of their home, the colorful rugs, the clothes they wear, the colors used)
and so much more for you to discover
I loved the fact that it was dad who saved the day, well, the night, here. While I am a mom myself, it is nice to see books that show the father as the wonderful caregiver that he is too.

Like the tales by Rumi, this book is sure to stand the test of time with so much to look for in the detailed illustrations; and the text is delightful as well to read alone or aloud!

I do wish the book had included the name of the original tale this story is based upon. Note it only mentions the collection of tales this is taken from. I was intrigued and tried to find the 13th century tale that inspired a monster under the bed retelling for today; but could not figure it out from what I checked of the original collection (English translations online) so far.

In Summary
A book to treasure for its tender twist on a typical tale of the monster under the bed and for its colorful, full-of-energy illustrations. And you turn the last page with lessons learned as well – how to embrace/conquer those monster-under-the-bed fears, and to look past appearances for you never know where and in who you find your next best friend!

Rating: 5/5
Reading Level: 4 – 7 years (and older too!)
Reread Level: 5/5

Disclaimer: Thank you to NetGalley, Myrick Marketing & Media, LLC and Tiny Owl Publishing for the digital review copy and the opportunity to provide an honest review

Apparently based on a tale (or poem) from the Sufi poet Rumi, Grobblechops is a picture book that focuses on familiar nighttime fears of children. Amir’s dad is readying him for bed, but Amir fears the monster (Grobblechops) may arrive through the night. For a while the two strategize about what Amir can do to get the monster to go away. Ultimately, the best solution is for Amir to share his toys with the creature.

The illustrations are satisfactory, but not exceptional. Grobblechops, the monster, is more whimsical than truly frightening. (I don’t think he’d scare little kids.) That’s a plus, I suppose. Really, though, I feel fairly indifferent to this picture book—which appears to be intended to encourage kids to make friends with their fears.

Not being overly familiar with Rumi’s work, I wish a short note about sources had been included.

This was such a cute, fun read! I loved it!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Fantastic story and illustrations to teach that not everything is scary at night and sometimes they can turn into something we never expected. This is a must have for any home library.

What a great book to read with kids! The author and illustrator take the common fear of a monster lurking under the bed and, in an amusing way, turn bedtime around. I enjoyed how the dad was able to help his son understand that he and monster probably have more in common than he realizes. The illustrations augment and bring depth to the story, and will help non-readers or beginning readers better understand what is happening.

A humorous story of a boy and his fear of the monster under his bed, however, in this one he can come out from anywhere. His father has a funny response to every one of the boy's excuses for not wanting to go to bed and in the end he sees the monster as not a nightmare, but a funny looking friends who likes to play with his trucks. A unique story that teaches a common lesson and calms the fear of that typical monster under the bed story.
#Grobblechops #Netgalley

It is the cute monster on the cover which drew my attention to this book. I also wanted to know about the inspiration for it. Who hasn’t had a monster to deal with at some point? Mine was in my closet and I just knew, as soon as the sun went down and my room got dark, it was there, lurking, ready to spring out and grab me.

Little Amir, and his teddy, faces his own monster. His dad is there, ready to reassure him that it’s okay and that he’ll protect Amir, But Amir is a master of “what if” questions and it takes (endlessly given) patience and ingenuity from his dad to calm all Amir’s fears.

The artwork is radically different from a lot of children’s picture books and has a kinetic quality that makes them appear to be in motion as well as showing an interesting skewed perspective. This alone will probably get a child’s interest. The cuteness of the monster, named Grobblechops, won’t scare them either. I had fun carefully looking at the progression of the illustrations – especially Amir’s teddy. One request would have been to include more information on the source of the story, B-

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a review copy.

Grobblechops is such a cute, adorable looking monster. How is it possible that anyone could be scared of him? But in this story Amir is dreading going to bed and finds more and more reasons to be scared. Thankfully, his dad is there to help calm those fears.

Thoughts:
One of my favorite things about reviewing picture books is the art work. I love to see the color choices, aesthetic style, and all the details the illustrator uses to bring a story to life. My only problem is that I don’t know anything about art so I find it difficult to truly describe in a review. But I am learning…slowly. In Grobblechops, each set of pages shows a full length picture. Each picture shows varied colors blending together in different sections of the page giving depth to the mood being experienced by Grobblechops, Amir or his father. The background collage of colors appears to be watercolor, but the forefront details, such as the bed and toys are more defined and is something different. I really like how there is so much to look at. If I’m not entranced by the background and how one color slowly fades to another, then there is the more detailed-forefront picture to admire, such as the dad’s pants. The dad in the story is wearing very detailed pants (and shirt) that must have been a lot of fun to draw.

In Grobblechops, Amir doesn’t want to go to bed. He’s scared because there might be a monster. But dad is there and he tells Amir that if a monster comes then he will come out and growl really loud to scare him. But Amir still isn’t sure and wonders what happens if the monster isn’t scared by the loud noise? So, the dad has to find a new way to calm Amir’s fears. But as soon as the dad comes up with a new way, Amir shoots it down with another “what if” situation. The story keeps going and going in this “what if” circle and eventually the monster’s dad and mom are involved along with Amir’s mother too. But dad knows just how to wind it down by telling Amir that he and the monster can play together while the adult parents sit down at the table and talk.

I always enjoy these type of picture bedtime books. They are fun and silly, but meaningful in helping to calm fears or bedtime concerns. The illustrations also really add to the story and give you a lot to enjoy as your read through it. I recommend this one if you are looking for a new bedtime book.

Rating: 5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Myrick Marketing & Media, LLC and Tiny Owl Publishing for the review copy and opportunity to provide an honest review.

**Publishes on agardenofbooks.com on 9/7**

This is such a beautiful book! I could enjoy it just from looking at the illustrations. What a nice story to read to a child who is feeling fearful at night. Great story.

First, let me say that I'm so happy the author and illustrator kept this book authentic, as far as the ethnicity of the characters, who I assume are middle eastern.

This book was very clever and I snickered a few times. especially the scene with the human parents and the monster parents.

I knew Rumi wrote deeply philosophical poems about love. I did not know he also wrote stories about monsters under the bed. (I think my biggest complaint about this charming little book is that there's little information about the original story, other than a brief mention of a work called Masnavi.)

It's time for bed, but Amir is afraid. What if a monster shows up? As his father continually tries to reassure him, Amir comes up with more what-ifs based on his father's responses. Subtly, as the exchange goes on, we can see the father gently steering things in a more friendly, reassuring direction, until at last Amir is ready to go to sleep, protected by the imaginative narrative that he and his father have built together.

The pictures are hectic and colourful, but I kind of like them. They illustrate the events in the book perfectly, and the humans and monsters alike come alive on the pages. Some illustrations had me smiling (like when Amir's mom heroically appears wielding a large umbrella), and others are just plain cute. (Watch Amir's teddy as the story progresses.)

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one--after all, it's billed as a story about monsters under the bed from a tale by a Sufi mystic--but I was pleasantly surprised. Amir's dad's handling of the situation is impressive, and it's nice to see the father take on the role of reassuring and comforting the child when they're experiencing a fear like this.

Stunning artwork. A great dad with a solution for everything and a vivid imagination to match his child’s. This is a book about overcoming fear, fear of that all-too-common bedtime monster. The colors are gorgeous, and the monsters imaginative and scary without being soul-crushingly frightening. At least they’re not so scary that it would be unimaginable that they could end up friendly and cuddly.