When Little Elliot visits the boardwalk for the first time with his friend Mouse, Elliot can’t help feeling scared about the new situation and all of the frightening things there. He can’t swim so the water chute is out of the question, some of the rides make him too dizzy, and other rides are too fast. He is not having fun at all, but by the end of the day Mouse assures him that nothing bad will happen to Elliot while they are together and shows the elephant how to have a good time in spite of his fears.

With all of the charm of the previous Little Elliot books, this book continues the sweet adventure of the two unlikely friends. Curato’s illustrations capture the feel of the past version of Coney Island as well as the adorable polka dotted elephant. The message shows readers that even though sometimes life can be scary and overwhelming when you are trying new things, friends can help you handle things that are frightening and appreciate the beautiful things in life. This elephant and his mouse friend are as precious as they were in the previous books, and readers will finish the book wanting more books about these characters. ( )

The boardwalk can be exciting, but also scary and overwhelming. This book tells the tale of little Elliot the elephant and Mouse experiencing the activities/rides at the boardwalk. Going from scared to excited, little Elliot learns how to love the boardwalk!
6 Books

Little Elliot's best friend Mouse takes him to Coney Island, but Elliot is nervous about all the rides and only enthusiastic about ice cream. Finally they find the perfect ride - a Ferris wheel.

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Re-read May 2018 ( )

LITTLE ELLIOT, BIG FUN is the third book in this popular picture book series featuring a polka-dot elephant.

Mouse assures Little Elliot that they will have a wonderful time at the amusement park. However, Little Elliot complains that the rides are too wet, fast, dizzy, or scary. Finally, Mouse finds a ride that Little Elliot enjoys.

Young children will enjoy the predictable elements and the story’s happy ending.

Librarians will find that this adorable elephant and his friend appeals to a cross section of young children. Consider a display that includes lots of books about friends going on adventures together.

To learn more about the publisher, go to http://www.mikecurato.com/.

Published by Henry Holt, an imprint of Macmillan on August 30, 2016. ARC courtesy of the publisher. ( )

Little Elliot the elephant and his best friend Mouse return in this third picture-book devoted to their New York adventures, which began in Little Elliot, Big City and continued in Little Elliot, Big Family. In this installment of their ongoing saga, they head to Coney Island for the day, where Mouse assures Elliot that he will have a fabulous time. Unfortunately, the timid Elliot is more frightened of the rides than excited by them, and quickly becomes overwhelmed by all the activity. Can Mouse save the day, and truly make it big fun for them both...?

This being a Little Elliot book, there's never much doubt of the happy ending, but it's still a pleasure to watch these two friends work out how they can both enjoy their outing. I'm really very thrilled to be given access to an early copy of Little Elliot, Big Fun, as it isn't officially released until the end of August. As expected, I enjoyed the story, but it was the artwork that really made this one for me. Mike Curato's use of deep but subtly toned colors, his depiction of Elliot's various states of discombobulation, all added greatly to my enjoyment. Coney Island comes alive as a site of both fun and fright, as an amusement park should. Recommended to anyone who is looking for good friendship stories in picture-book form, and to anyone who enjoyed the first two Little Elliot books. ( )