Pretty Ugly by David Sedaris, illustrated by Ian Falconer
I'm a huge David Sedaris fan and am usually aware when he has a new book coming out. However, even with this being a picture book (aka right up my alley!), it wasn't on my radar until recently, despite being on the Most Anticipated Books of 2024 List from Kirkus Reviews. I must be living under a rock!
Anyway, I was glad to get my hands on it because this house has tons of Toon books so even if Sedaris and Falconer weren't behind the scenes, you know it's gonna be good.
The first few pages reminded me of Saturday Night Live's take on The Twilight Zone with Pamela Anderson, to the point where I was thinking, "At least kids who haven't seen that sketch may think this book is a fresh take on the issue."
Then came the twist.
I should have known Sedaris wouldn't go with the standard idea of monsters finding true beauty to be repulsive, though I definitely thought the book was going to be a letdown at a point.
But it's not. I can't say much more because I don't want to give it away---and this twist is worth it. Let's just say... my son had to hold his hand over the page because it grossed him out so much, while I thought it was delightful.
Overall, this is a funny twist on "beautiful on the inside" with amazing final illustrations from Ian Falconer, especially lovely if you grew up loving Olivia like I did.
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