Back to top

The danger of being an unreliable narrator

Cover of I Do Not Eat Children
A review of I Do Not Eat Children by Marcus Cutler

"I would never eat a child. What do you think I am...a monster?" proclaims the main character of this book who, admittedly, looks an awful lot like a monster. 

The orange creature stands in a line with a bunch of kids. Ten kids, to be exact - this is important, so pay attention. Each kid has some sort of accessory - a kite, a soccer ball, knitting needles, etc. 

As our creature continues to profess their innocence, you might notice a discarded trumpet on the ground. Wait... how many kids are there now? This is tricky, as kids continue to disappear, making sure the reader keeps a careful count on each page. Finally, we are down to one monster and one kid reading a book, with a suspicious look on their face. As the monster tiptoes up sneakily, this kid responds: "I do eat liars," before we see the final spread - monster free. 

The hilarious twist made me laugh out loud, and I loved re-reading this to count the kids and track all the different pieces they left behind. But my favorite was the monster, reminiscent of the characters I love from Jon Klassen's hat books ("I would not eat a rabbit. Don't ask me anymore questions"), who finally meets their match.

Nov 8, 2024