Book club: week 5

As much as I love happy books, this one is not really a happy book: "Not now, Bernard" by David McKee.

Personally, I think it's a brilliant book for parents. And because children love it so much, the parents get to read it again and again till they (we) get the message. I was a bit sceptical reading this book to my 4 years old, thought she might be scared, but she loved it so much and asked to read every night. I'm not sure what the children love about it, probably for them it's just a story about a boy and a monster. As for the parents...
A boy called Bernand goes to both of this parents and gets "Not now, Bernard" because they are too busy. He is then sent to the garden where he knows there is a monster. The monster eats Bernard and goes inside. Both mum and dad don't notice that it's not Bernard anymore, but a monster, he eats his dinner on his own in front of TV and gets sent to bed with his milk already waiting for him. When the moster tries to object and says "But I'm a monster", he gets the same "Not now, Bernard", because Bernard's parents are still not looking at him.
For me, it's a good reminder to give my children enough attention, to listen to them. There is always something to do - shopping, cooking, washing, cleaning, the list is endless! It's easy to forget what is really important and make a way to always notice children, instead of constantly saying "Not now!".