When Willa Cathcart Wilmerding must stop her nightly howling at the moon, she runs away from home. When in the mountains, she finds a bigfoot (who has enjoyed scaring hikers and decorating her cave with the things dropped/left behind by fleeing souls) the two find a kindred spirit in each other. Even if it gets off to a rocky start with said Bigfoot trying to scare Willa away. And said Bigfoot is named Buttercup, (and yes, I thought of the HMS Pinafore song, I’m Called Little Buttercup… flashbacks to a fifth-grade operetta went before my eyes and ears). But I digress… Buttercup and Willa have grand adventures until Willa must go home. The ending is a bit rushed, but the final result is delightful.
Buttercup the Bigfoot by Douglas Rees is not your mother’s (or father’s) Bigfoot or friendship story. We have a modern girl, doing less than always “girly” things. We have a Bigfoot that is scary, big, very pink and has a great design sense. And we have Isabel Munoz’s illustrations to give it a modern quirkiness to the look. The colors are bold, but not too bold. The details are just Baby Bear right and they compliment and match the text nicely.
Overall, the book is sweet, funny and a good “girl power” (without coming out and saying YAAAY GIRL POWER) book. Willa is modern in her demeanor and attitudes. There is not a lot of traditional action (no chase scenes, flying saucers attacking) but just two friends (who look different) having fun and enjoying themselves. I am not sure if there is a message so much as there is fun. Really all ages can find something to enjoy in these pages.
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