Fox + Chick: The Party and Other Stories by Sergio Ruzzier

Today's guest contributor is Patrick Gall. Patrick works as the Early Childhood/Lower School Librarian at the Catherine Cook School in Chicago. He served on the 2015 Newbery Award Committee, is currently serving on the USBBY Outstanding International Books List committee, and is a guest reviewer for The Horn Book Magazine.

As far as the last few years of unconventional beginning readers go, Sergio Ruzzier has been an author/illustrator to watch. I’d argue that the wonderfully miniature Two Mice (2015) and the metafictive This is Not a Picture Book! (2016) were both strong Geisel contenders during their individual years, although they certainly don’t follow anything close to a Ready to Read or I Like to Read formula. Notably, Ruzzier’s illustrations for other recent beginning reader-ish texts, such as Eve Bunting’s Whose Shoe? (2015) and Katie Hesterman’s A Round of Robins (2018), are generally more straightforward in terms of narrative structure and format than his previously mentioned standalone titles. Ruzzier’s newest solo work, Fox + Chick: The Party and Other Stories, is a shift toward more conventional storytelling while still being a slightly unorthodox Geisel contender in that it is both a great beginning reader and superb comic.

In 4 panels, fox sits underneath a ticking clock. Photos provided by Patrick Gall.

 Set in Ruzzier’s signature quasi-Mediterranean fantasy world of polychrome rocks, pom-pom foliage, and anthropomorphized animals, The Party and Other Stories is centered around the mild-mannered Fox and incorrigible Chick. Each of the book’s three short stories offer young readers a fairly predictable gag, along with an additional element that sets each joke pleasingly askew. For example, when Chick asks Fox to use his bathroom we find, after Fox waits for several hours, that Chick is having a raging party! When asked to leave, Chick indignantly replies, “I guess he didn’t mean it when he said I could use his bathroom.” After berating Fox for eating vegetables instead of critters such as field mice, frogs, and well, little birds, Chick is thankful for Fox’s vegetarian soup, as well as for not being eaten, for which Fox snidely replies, “At least not today.” The final story features Fox attempting to paint Chick’s portrait after being told by Chick that “Landscapes are boring,” and neglecting to do so because the little bird just won’t sit still. Upon completing his landscape painting, Fox receives praise from Chick, along with the following suggestion: “You should paint a portrait of me one day.” Fascinatingly, Fox agrees, stating, “Great idea, Chick. One day I will.”

Fox shows chick a landscape painting he has just finished.

These slight tweaks at the end of each story add an extra layer of narrative complexity. Likewise, Ruzzier’s pen, ink, and watercolor illustrations – although playful and amusing – are also complex and maturely executed. In particular, shifts between varied panel layouts are seamless and carry storytelling import. Young readers familiar with comics will likely glean meaning easily and subconsciously navigate each page without a second thought, but some confusion could arise for those less accustomed to the format. Another point of concern is Ruzzier’s propensity for complex, multi-syllabic words, particularly when those words aren’t directly supported by the illustrations. In the second story, for example, Chick repeatedly identifies difficult to read animal names that Fox should eat, including grasshoppers, chipmunks, squirrels, and lizards – none of which are visually depicted. Part of the charm of this bit is Chick’s rapid-fire diatribe, making for a funny scene, but one that is less than supportive of beginning readers.

Chick tells Fox some of the things he thinks foxes are supposed to eat.

My impression of Fox + Chick: The Party and Other Stories, like most other Sergio Ruzzier picture books, is that he simply made the book that he wanted to make, and if it turned out to be a beginning reader, so be it. Having that said, this collection of stories is a pretty great beginning reader comic that kids will most likely love (see What Kids Say Series – July, 2018), even though they may ask for some help with the trickier words.