“I do not want to mop your slop. So I will RUN! Run far away!

In this fun twist on the Gingerbread Man tale, a much beleaguered mop decides to run away from its duties leading various animals on a wild chase.

This early reader is blended with the comic book style with a few panels sprinkled in and speech bubbles throughout. The art is fun and inviting while devoid of “background noise” so it is as simple as the story itself. The glee and mischief on the mop’s face as it runs away is a guaranteed smile. The tale is great for those working on phonics as the “-op” word family (stop, slop, glop, mop, hop, clop, etc.) gets a starring role throughout.

Kids just starting to read on their own will find this a fun deviation from the more staid staples of beginning readers. In terms of difficulty, this reader slides right in-between Mo Willems’ Elephant & Piggie series and Jill Esbaum’s Thunder and Cluck series with just as much fun.

Highly recommended.