Review #87: A Pet for Petunia

Dad:  Tell us about "A Pet for Petunia."
Elijah (age 5):  Petunia wants a pet skunk.
Lily (age 8):  Petunia really likes skunks.  Actually, she really, really, really, really, really so-much-likes skunks that she LOVES skunks.
Isaac (age 12):  She loves skunks more than anything in the whole universe.  And so she wants a skunk.  You don't hear that every day.
Elijah:  I wouldn't want one.
Lily:  Petunia doesn't know the secret-secrets of skunks.  A smell.
Gracie (age 10):  I've never smelled one, and I don't want to.
Lily:  Petunia runs out to the forest.  She sees a skunk.  And she smells the smell of her life: Stink.
Elijah:  She loved the stink.
Lily:  She smelled the Stink of Stinks.  After that, she still loved skunks, but she stopped wanting a real one.
Gracie:  She decided her pet would be a stuffed animal skunk.
Isaac:  But then Petunia wants a porcupine.
Lily: (singing)  "Now I love porcupines just the way they are..."
Dad:  What did you think of that skunk in the book?
Elijah:  He's adorable!
Gracie:  He's so cute!
Lily:  I would want that skunk.  If we got gas masks I would.
Gracie:  Paul Schmid draws the cutest skunks in the world.
Lily:  The key is big foreheads.
Isaac:  Little eyeballs.  Little cute smile.
Gracie:  It's just so cute.
Isaac:  I love that skunk!
Gracie:  For these pictures Paul Schmid only uses black and white and purple.  And tiny bits and pieces of yellow.  But most of the book is just black, white, and purple.
Elijah:  It's like he used watercolor.
Isaac:  Little splotches.
Dad:  Just like Petunia loves her skunks, each of you guys has your own favorite animal, don't you.  Lily is our duck lover.
Lily:  I want a real duck.  Ducks are adorable.  Our neighbor Gina had a real duck from a farm.  Why can't I have a duck?
Gracie:  Gina used to have a turtle.  But she had to give it away.  And then she had a duck.  But that ran away.  And she used to have three bunnies.  But two of them died.
Dad:  Yikes.  I don't think I'd give Gina any more animals.  Now, we saw that skunks have drawbacks -- are there any problems with having a duck?
Lily:  They nibble you.
Elijah:  I want a turtle.  I love turtles.
Gracie:  I love, love, love pandas.  They are absolutely adorable.  Even more adorable than skunks.  But I can't have a panda because they are almost extinct, and they are protected by Chinese police.  But I want one so bad.  I at least want to see one in real life.
Elijah:  I want to see a real turtle in real life.
Dad:  I think your chances are better than Gracie's.
Gracie:  I could fly to China...  smuggle a panda bear onto the plane...
Dad:  Even little sister Evie has her "own" special animal.
Lily:  Owls!
Dad:  And you each have lots of stuffed versions of your favorite animal.
Elijah:  Yeah.
Isaac:  I don't.
Dad:  What is your animal Isaac?  Do you even have one?
Isaac:  A turkey.
Dad:  What?  You are making that up.  I've never heard you say that once ever.
Isaac:  No, no, no.  I decided that two weeks ago.  I decided I need to get a real turkey, so ever since I've wanted one.
Dad:  I thought dragons were your favorite.  You are Dragon-boy.
Isaac:  Dragons don't exist.
Gracie:  You don't have any stuffed turkeys do you?
Isaac:  Nope.
Dad:  On Thanksgiving we get stuffed with turkey.
Isaac:  Or we get turkey with stuffing.
Dad:  Alright.  So Isaac likes turkeys now.  Now you each have an animal.
Isaac:  I want a real turkey so it can guard the house.  I could train it to attack robbers.
Dad:  I think Elijah's animal is the most realistic.  We might be able to get an aquarium with a little turtle someday.
Gracie:  How much do you think they cost?
Elijah:  Ninety million.
Dad:  Wow.  Well, maybe we won't be getting one.

a porcupine for Petunia, by Gracie

a duck for Lily, by Lily

a turtle for Elijah, by Elijah

a turkey for Isaac, by Isaac

Author/Illustrator: Paul Schmid
Published, 2011: HarperCollins
Like it?  Here it is