Playhouse

Carol-Ann Hoyte is a children’s bookseller in Montreal.

Rene asks her father to build a playhouse for her, with an upstairs and
a downstairs and windows. When he’s finished, Rene asks for a few more
additions—a play barn and some animals—requests that her parents
fulfil. But when Rene asks her mother to make her “play parents”
because “the real ones are too bossy,” her mother puts her foot
down. Rene takes charge and creates play parents plus two play brothers,
all out of cardboard. At dinnertime, she gets a shock when her mother
turns the tables on her: while everyone in the family gets to enjoy
dinner, Rene gets to enjoy a “play meal.”

The humor in the book lies in the lengths (from reasonable to
ridiculous) to which Rene’s parents go to please her. When Rene asks
for a play cow, her father explains why she can’t have one. She
responds by asking him to paint a goat to look like a cow, and he
indulges her. Rene’s family’s farm is remotely located and her
playmate selection is limited to her brothers. These factors explain why
Rene’s parents do as much as they can to keep her entertained. What
adults will appreciate and find reassuring is how Rene’s parents use
affection and humor to show her how she’s been behaving and to rope
her back in when her demands go too far. Martchenko’s very funny
illustrations exaggerate everything in the story. Readers will enjoy the
secondary storyline, which involves a rooster, hens, and a fox that the
artist cleverly weaves into his images. Recommended.