It's Mr Large's birthday and Mrs Large has prepared him a meal, as they're going to celebrate with a quiet night in. But as usual in the Large household, things don't go to plan, and Mr and Mrs Large fall asleep on the sofa! So the little Larges sneak off to bed with all the lovingly prepared food...
From Publishers Weekly
"Exhausted parents everywhere," to whom Murphy dedicates this work, will be as tickled as their young ones by her jovial story, the fourth book featuring the Large family--those precocious, precious pachyderms who made their debut in Five Minutes' Peace . "It's Daddy's birthday, and we're going to have a quiet night in," Mrs. Large informs her four children. Resigned to the fact that they are expected to go to bed early to ensure their parents a tranquil evening, the young elephants, markers and paintbrushes in trunk, make decorations for the dinner table. But, alas, Mrs. Large's romantic repast never materializes. Mr. Large comes home from work very weary, and falls asleep while reading the kids a bedtime story. And guess who does the same when she takes over? After covering their dozing parents with a blanket, the children, resolving that it would be a pity to waste the birthday meal, carry it upstairs for a bedtime snack, spilling merrily as they go. Brimming with droll particulars, Murphy's colored-pencil renditions of the family's antics are as spirited as ever--and are an ideal match for her cleverly understated text. Ages 3-up.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-Mr. and Mrs. Large and their four children are back. This time Mrs. Large wants her husband to enjoy a quiet birthday evening at home. Her "helpful" children innocently impede her preparations for a special dinner-for-two, and then beg for a bedtime story as a reward for going to bed early. Finally leaving their exhausted parents dinnerless and sound asleep on the sofa, they trail off to bed quietly, taking Mr. and Mrs. Large's special repast with them. Another hilarious chapter in the elephant family's chronicles, this is a definite winner. The illustrations are first rate; especially priceless are the expressions on the elephants' faces. The text is full of humor and instantly recognizable as true to life; the story is a fine example of a happy, loving family. Not to be missed.
Judy Constantinides, East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LA
