Picture Book Monday - A review of It’s Monday, Mrs. Jolly Bones!

I am an annoyingly organized person. Or so I am told. I do certain chores on certain days, like my mother does, and my grandmother did. There is something comforting about having a wash-the-linens day, and a do-the-food-shopping day. In today's picture book you will meet a lady who does a different task on each week day, but there is something unique about the way she does her chores, something delightfully odd.

It’s Monday, Mrs. Jolly Bones!

Warren Hanson

Illustrated by Tricia Tusa

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 6

Simon and Schuster, 2013, 978-1-4424-1229-3

Mrs. Jolly Bones has a full week ahead of her. Being an organized soul, she assigns a certain task to every week day. On Monday she does the laundry, on Tuesday she gardens, on Wednesday she cleans the house, on Thursday she does the grocery shopping, and on Friday she bakes.

   These chores sound pretty straight forward. They are the kinds of chores that men and women all over the world do every day, right? Yes they are, but it is unlikely that many people do their chores in quite the same manner as Mrs. Jolly Bones.

   For example, on Monday, when Mrs. Jolly Bones does the laundry, she gathers and sorts the laundry, she washes the clothes and dries them. Then she irons and folds everything. So far her laundry day has been very normal. What is rather unusual is that Mrs. Jolly Bones then takes all those clean fresh-smelling clothes and tosses them out of the window so that they will “brighten up the street.”

   If you think this is odd, wait until you see what she does after she cleans the house, or what she does with the groceries she buys on Thursday.

   Children love books that contain surprises, and this particular book is full of them. The story has a normal beginning and then it becomes clear that Mrs. Jolly Bones has her own way of doing things, ways that will keep readers guessing all the way through the book.

   Children are going not only going to enjoy hearing about Mrs. Jolly Bones and her strange behavior, but they are also going to love exploring Trish Tusa’s cunning and amusing artwork.