Go Away, Big Green Monster!

by Ed Emberley

Book Overview

OVER 1.3 MILLION COPIES SOLD!

Caldecott winner Ed Emberley's classic interactive story lets children scare away their bedtime frights and is silly fun for Halloween and every other day of the year!

As kids turn the die-cut pages of this vibrantly illustrated book, they'll watch the Big Green Monster grow before their very eyes. Then, when they're ready to show him who's in charge, they'll turn the remaining pages...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316236535
• ISBN13: 9780316236539
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: LB Kids
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.5" x 11.1"
• Age Range: 4 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 3

Customer Reviews

Great condition

This is one of my favorite childhood books now I get to own it for my son at a great price!

Go away big green monster

Book came ripped

The book was damaged and part of a page was missing.

Ruined the story for my students.

A great book for learning colors!

This book keeps the attention of kids of all ages! I use it to teach colors to preschoolers-so fun!!

It Isn't Easy Being Green . . .

Show the monster in your life who's boss with this delightful picture book from Ed Emberly! A book perfect for your youngster who might dread the thing that goes bump in the night or wonder what lurks under their bed, this book takes a rather direct approach to summoning, then banishing the monster, and empowering a child to do the same. The book itself is a wonderful example of a "movable book" in that the pages are designed to slowly reveal the face of a rather cartoonish monster through cut outs, so that the face is gradually revealed. Starting with two "big yellow eyes", the pages progress through adding a mouth and nose and hair, until children can perceive the entire face of the monster. Then the same process is done in reverse, with pieces of the monster disappearing as the text commands those pieces to go away, until the monster is gone. This Cheshire cat-like visual trick is used effectively, and will not only give children some sense of power over the monster, but allows them to guess what will appear or disappear next, and to grasp the sense of shapes and color that make up the monster. The text is simple fairly large and appealing white text on a vividly colored page. When the monster is being assembled, children can become familiar with the adjectives and colors used to describe each part. The "big yellow eyes", the "long bluish-greenish nose", the "purple squiggly hair" and so forth. As the monster is disassembled, the words "Go Away" are repeated on each page, larger than the rest of the text, and each command ends with an exclamation point, reinforcing the fact that the reader is telling the monster what to do. The last page declares "And don't come back!" with a smaller admission of "Until I say so." Giving children complete control of the situation, and potentially encouraging them to go through the book again when they choose to. The pages in the hardcover edition are very sturdy and stiff, which is helpful when the book contains cutouts. It's not likely to rip or tear easily, even if young hands are turning the pages. I personally love this book, and know many kids that enjoy it, but it may be too scary for your child if they aren't ready for it. Despite it's cartoonish appearance, the monster does have "big sharp teeth" and could unnerve younger children. You might want to discuss the book with them first, and see if they think they will be too scared or not-kids are pretty good at deciding that sort of thing. If the child is unsure, it may be better to wait until they are ready. The power of this book is giving children control over the monsters they might imagine, and in providing a visual game of pictures that they can play again and again. If you like this book and you're looking for others that deal with monsters and scary things, you might try THERE'S A NIGHTMARE IN MY CLOSET by Mercer Mayer, THERE'S A MONSTER UNDER MY BED by James Howe and WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE by Maurice Sendak. Happy Reading! ^_

Alredy a classic

I'm a children's librarian. This book is so incredibly popular with my library children that I order a dozen copies at a time. Its simple, bold graphics are extremely pleasing, and the children love the cutout pictures.I frequently use this book for story programs. The first part of the book builds the monster by adding one facial feature at a time. I usually ask the children what the facial feature is or what color it is. The hair is purple, the face is green. When the monster is complete, I ask if they are scared. They never are. Then we get out our pointer fingers, shake them at the book, and in our bossiest voice chase that monster away. The book ends with the children telling the monster not to come back until we say so.Whenever I read this book to a group, I invariably see children rereading the book on their own. Usually half the children want to check out a copy of the book. Because the graphics are so good, and the story so strong, even very young children can "read" this book to themselves. I love to see the children sitting at tables, shaking their fingers at the book, and gruffly telling that bad monster to "Go away."I highly recommend this book because it is empowering, it's fun, and it's a great book to teach your child to love books.

Better than "Monster Spray"

This book is the ultimate "empowering tool" for giving little ones control over their fears. It first builds a monster, adding a feature or two on each page through the use of cut-out pages. First the two big yellow eyes appear, then the long bluish-greenish nose. By the time you add the big, scary green face, you've got one scary monster.But don't worry, because once Big Green Monster is all put together, he's taken apart again. "YOU DON'T SCARE ME!" reads the text, "So, GO AWAY..." Page by page and one by one, the scary features disappear as ordered. The book ends with "GO AWAY, Big Green Monster! And DON'T COME BACK! Until I say so."Wow. If only I'd had this book when that scary clown was in my son's closet. Or when the mysterious cowboy was in his brother's room. Or when that nasty giant was hiding out in my parents' fireplace about thirty years ago.

Excellent book for language development

As a Speech-Language Pathologist working with the birth to 3 yr old population, I don't leave home without this book. Even children with almost no expressive language love this book. They begin identifying body parts and love to say "And don't come back until I say so!" They all start to "read" along with me and anticipate the ending.

A great book that allows active child participation.

"Go away, Big Green Monster has delighted my preschooler for nearly a year now. After reading it to him only 2 or 3 times he had memorized nearly every page. Now when we crack open the book, he reads it to me first and then I read it to him. He especially likes the last page because he can firmly state with power, "Go away, Big Green Monster and don't come back, until I say so!" This book is also a good tool in color and shape recognition.