"Are you BAD? / I'm REALLY bad. / Scare-the-tails-off-all-the-other-dinosaurs / BAD." This T. rex has bad breath, a swivel neck and "triple-digit, / kick-a-whomper / STOMPERS." After checking off a few more of his stats, he admits he's very hungry. He chases flyers but they get away. He can't catch the runners; they're too fast. Even the little fuzzies escape. He sees a triceratops on the hoof, but it has backup. This big baddie is going to starve! Flip up that gatefold . . . and there's his mom with some dino "takeout." The formula isn't new, but here McMullans have not only added an alliterative, rhythmic gem to their list of crowd-pleasers, they've also created an endearingly flawed character in this dino, who's sure to please any thunder-lizard lover. From the bright, heavy-lined watercolors to the braggadocio kids will revel in, this is an easy choice for multiple-copy purchases. (Picture book. 3-8)

Starred Review. PreS-Gr 2—What could possibly equal the McMullans' audacious garbage truck in I Stink! (2002) and the brazen backhoe in I'm Dirty! (2006, both HarperCollins) for unadulterated attitude? Why, a towering, tough-talking T. rex, of course, complete with "rip-'em-up CLAWS," "bite-'em-up FANGS," and "Bad breath." (And don't even think of making fun of its "baby arms.") This creature is really big, "6-tons-of-MUSCLE-on-the-hustle BIG," with a "BIG empty belly growling for GRUB." Despite the beast's bravado, however, its attempts at catching prey are repeatedly—and hilariously—foiled. The predator's state of mind moves from arrogance to despair on a wonderfully illustrated psychedelic spread awhirl with forest foliage and easy-to-spot edible critters that the frustrated T. rex can smell but can't find. As the great hunter lies on its back having a tantrum, a vertical fold-out page is lifted to reveal the reptile's even bigger mother, who provides a bit of "takeout" for her grateful child. Vibrant artwork done in bold shades of green, orange, and violet equal the swaggering text in tone, energy, and humor. Whether devoured during a boisterous storytime or consumed independently, children will eat this one up.—Joy Fleishhacker, School Library Journal
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The winning team behind I Stink!and I'm Dirty!trade garbage trucks and bulldozers for another machine-size marauder: a green-and-blue T. rex with an attitude. "Are you bad?" taunts the Tyrannosaur, uncannily eye-to-eye with the audience. "I'm really bad... Got rip-'em-up claws. Got bite-'em-up fangs. Bad breath? Yeaaahhhhhhh." At first, the T. rex fills the full-bleed, tropical spreads in a riot of orange, purple and yellow. A proud bully, he shows off "a swivel neck for watchin' my back," then whips around to confront the reader again: "Did you just call me Baby Arms? Long as yours, pal." Despite his posturing, this T. rex is a little defensive, and although he stalks prey, he never catches anything. When he throws a weepy tantrum ("I need chow right now... owowow"), a vertical gatefold pictures a much larger T. rex towering over him. "Mom?! I wasn't crying," he chirps as she supplies a dead lizard ("Awright—takeout!"). The McMullans play their cards just right—kids will love the joke of the tough guy who still needs his mother. Ages 4-8. (May)

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