Penguin Problems

Penguin Problems is a 2016 Children's picture book by Jory John and illustrated by Lane Smith. It is about a penguin that complains about his situation. They would later follow that up with Giraffe Problems (2018) and Cat Problems (2021).

Penguin Problems
AuthorJory John
IllustratorLane Smith
CountryUSA
LanguageEnglish
GenreChildren's picture book
Published2016 (Random House)
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages29 (unpaginated)
ISBN9780553513370
OCLC960168963

Reception

Penguin Problems was well-received by critics, including a starred review from Kirkus Reviews, who said the book is "well-paced, bursting with humor, and charmingly misanthropic."[1] Jan Carr, writing for Common Sense Media, gave the book four out of five stars.[2]

Multiple praised John's writing. Booklist's Sarah Hunter highlighted the book's "wry humor", as did Publishers Weekly, who said, "John [...] delivers a rat-a-tat series of laughs".[3] Sam Bloom, writing for Horn Book Magazine, added, "The temperature may be below freezing, but the snark level is cranked up high in this collaboration between funnymen John and Smith."[4] The New York Times's Michael Ian Black called the book "funny and acerbic".[5]

Reviewers also highlighted Smith's illustrations, which Booklist's Smith called "distinctive".[6] Publishers Weekly said the "minimalist polar landscapes highlight the penguin's awkward moments".[3] The New York Times's Black highlighted the "evocative illustrations of endless cold, frightful inky depths and the spartan beauty of Antarctic mountain peaks".[5]

School Library Journal's Joy Fleishhacker also complimented the "sublime pairing", which she says "results in a rib-tickling exploration of what it means to look at the unsunny side."[7]

Awards and honors

Penguin Problems is a Junior Library Guild book.[8] The Irish Times named it one of the best children's books of 2016,[9] and Bank Street College of Education included it on their 2017 list of the year's best children's books.[10]

Awards for Penguin Problems
Year Award Result Ref.
2016 Kirkus Prize for Young Readers Nominee [8]
2018-2019 Prairie Bloom Book Award Nominee [8]
2019 Beehive Award Nominee [11]

References
  1. "Penguin Problems". Kirkus Reviews. Kirkus Media LLC. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  2. Carr, Jan. "Penguin Problems Book Review". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on 2023-03-22. Retrieved 2023-09-11. This knowing, witty look at penguin (and human) nature, is best for kids with an offbeat sense of humor.
  3. "Penguin Problems by Jory John". Publishers Weekly. 2016-06-13. Archived from the original on 2023-05-30. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  4. Bloom, Sam (2016). "Penguin Problems". The Horn Book Magazine. Archived from the original on 2021-12-26. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via King County Library System.
  5. Black, Michael Ian (2016-11-11). "Is Life Fair? Four Picture Books Say No". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-12-06. Retrieved 2021-12-26. "Penguin Problems," written by Jory John and illustrated by Lane Smith, is for all those parents whose own darling Peters and Peytons and Tylers and Tristans occasionally (and I am sure it is only very occasionally) metamorphose into that little penguin.
  6. Hunter, Sarah (August 2016). "Penguin Problems". Booklist. Archived from the original on 2021-10-19. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  7. Fleishhacker, Joy (2016-08-01). "Penguin Problems". School Library Journal. Archived from the original on 2023-09-11. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  8. "Penguin Problems by Jory John". Junior Library Guild. Archived from the original on 2021-10-11. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  9. Claire Hennessy (December 18, 2016). "Worthy and wonderful: The best children's and YA fiction of 2016". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on January 23, 2022. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  10. "Five to Nine: Humor". The Best Children's Books of the Year 2017 Edition. Bank Street College of Education. 2017. p. 19. ISSN 1523-6471. Archived from the original on December 26, 2021. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
  11. "Children's Fiction Books—Beehive Nominees 2019" (PDF). Children's Literature Association of Utah. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-10-11. Retrieved 2021-10-10.
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