Big Birthday

By Kate Hosford

Annabelle is determined to have a birthday party that stands out from the rest. The moon seems like the perfect spot! But wearing spacesuits and partying in a place with no air create some challenges that Annabelle didn't expect. Will her out-of-this-world birthday still be a blast?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lerner Publishing
• Release date: Aug 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781512460469

Kate Hosford

Kate Hosford is the author of several picture books, including Infinity and Me which won the New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book award and was named an ALA Notable Children's Book. She lives in Brooklyn.

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Reviews for Big Birthday

[sullywriter_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sequel to Big Bouffant.

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Annabelle, the rather willful young individualist who first appeared in author Kate Hosford and illustrator Holly Clifton-Brown's Big Bouffant, returns in this second poetic picture-book devoted to her adventures. In the earlier story, she was determined to have a unique hairstyle; here her goal is to have a birthday party unlike any other. Deciding that nothing less than a celebration on the moon will do, Annabelle works toward her goal, and pesters her father about it as well. But will she enjoy this outer space birthday party as much as she thinks she will...?Like its predecessor, Big Birthday pairs a rhyming text with colorful and quirky illustrations. Also like its predecessor, I found the artwork here more appealing that the story. Annabelle continues to strike me as a somewhat unsympathetic character, and I found her insistence on getting her own way, and her preference for being different, even at the expense of her friends and family's comfort, rather unpleasant. I think we're meant to find her a "feisty girl," a type that is quite popular these days in the pages of children's fiction, but I just found her self-involved. Leaving that aside, I also wasn't particularly impressed by the text, which often felt a little forced, in terms of both rhythm and rhyme. What saved the book from being a one-star title for me was the artwork by Holly Clifford-Brown, which I thought was quite appealing, in an offbeat, charming kind of way. Tastes will vary, of course, so I would recommend this one to anyone who enjoyed the first Annabelle story.

[sdpogue · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Annabelle wants her birthday on the moon. However, she soon discovers that big birthdays come with big challenges.This is a ridiculously fun book to read. The pictures only add to the fun – they are bright and inviting. I had a blast reading this book. I could not believe she actually got her birthday party on the moon when the book started. It’s fun and delightful. A great book to get kids talking about planning ahead when they ask for something like a party on the moon. What are the challenges? What are the perks?I can’t wait to share this book with my birthday boy (he’s just turned 15).