We Don't Eat Our Neighbors by Daniel J. Mahoney (review)

Reviewed by: We Don't Eat Our Neighbors by Daniel J. Mahoney Natalie Berglind Mahoney, Daniel J. We Don't Eat Our Neighbors; written and illus. by Daniel J. Mahoney. Farrar, 2024 40 Trade ed. ISBN 9780374391263 18. 99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 5-8 yrs Libby and Herbert are alligator siblings, and their parents want to move them out of the swamp and into a suburban neighborhood filled with humans. Just one problem—while their parents are vegetarian, and Libby's people allergies became apparent after "nibbling on Herbert's Boy Scout leftovers, " Herbert has quite a hankering for human flesh. Libby quickly makes friends, but a series of munching incidents leave Herbert an outcast at school. For the sake of his mom's new job as a pastry chef, Herbert puts in an effort to avoid consuming his classmates, but his "Kiss Me I'm Vegan" shirt and "Eat Donuts Not People" sign are entirely unconvincing. Herbert finally proves that he can play nice without eating anyone when he's given the chance to kick butt at soccer, and his classmates slowly accept that they won't be on the menu at lunch time. This silly picture book has a delightfully dark sense of humor that fully leans into its nonsense, sure to make for a lively and laughter-filled story time. Rendered in ink and watercolor, the simple, steady art depicts Herbert's bipedal family doing very human things like icing cakes and vacuuming, while text brings more complexity, using full sentences with dialogue that offer an appropriate challenge for older viewers who try it on their own. We may never get answers to why an alligator family would need to integrate with human society or if using a tail to hit a soccer ball is a legal move, but at least Herbert's classmates are safe. End Page 368 Copyright © 2024 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois