I Don't Want to Be a Pea!

I Don't Want to Be a Pea! by Ann Bonwill
Illustrated by Simon Rickerty
Published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
2012

     -All hippos have birds, and Bella is mine.
     -Correction. All birds have hippos, and Hugo is mine.

     Hugo the hippo and Bella the bird are inseparable friends. They are getting ready to attend the Hippo-Bird Fairy-Tale Fancy Dress Party (or Bird-Hippo party, if you ask Bella) and they have to decide on a costume. Hugo wants to go as a princes and have Bella go as a pea.  "But I don't want to be a pea. It's too green and small," says Bella. She has other plans.  What about her going as a mermaid and Hugo being her rock? (since he is "gray and blobby").  As their disagreement grows, they decide neither one of them wants to go to the party anymore. Will they find a compromise?
     I Don't Want to Be a Pea! is a delightful read aloud, great for the youngest readers and the lower elementary grades. It works great as a pair reading and it leads itself to hilarious act-it-outs.  I dare you to pick a favorite between Hugo and Bella.