Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

A boy's careening imagination fuels the zingy verse and art in this lighthearted take on a familiar theme. Comedian and musical satirist Yankovic opens his first children's book with Billy hogging the spotlight during show-and-tell: ""I proudly stood up and began my oration/ Concerning my choice for a future vocation."" His formality gives way to freewheeling fantasies as he envisions himself a world-famous chef (""My walls will be filled with awards that I've gotten/ For toast-on-a-stick and my Twinkies au gratin""), a snail trainer (""Why, that's a no-brainer!""), a lathe operator, and a giraffe milker (""It's oh-so-clich%C3%A9 to get milk from a cow,/ And I bet all those cows need a break anyhow""). The tempo quickens when the boy begins listing rather than describing potential professions, even the most mainstream of which Hargis (Jackson and Bud's Bumpy Ride) portrays with comedic hyperbole. He offers especially outlandish depictions of Billy as gorilla masseuse, deodorant tester, and tarantula shaver. After all the wackiness, Yankovic's poem wraps up on a more realistic note, as the boy finds career inspiration closer to school. Ages 4%E2%80%938. (Feb.)

Horn Book (Mon Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2011)

In pop-music parodist Weird Al's witty literary debut, eight-year-old Billy is asked by his teacher what he wants to be when he grows up. This query releases a veritable flood of ideas, including "big sumo wrestler or hedge-fund investor / Or smelly-pit-sniffing deodorant tester." Yankovic's toe-tapping salute to childhood curiosity features illustrations that are as warm as they are wacky.

ALA Booklist (Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2011)

In his debut children's book, the comic "Weird Al" Yankovic celebrates individuality in an exuberantly odd, rhyming story about an eight-year-old who cannot wait to share what he will be when he grows up. Maybe he'll be a gorilla masseuse or an artist who sculpts out of chocolate mousse. As the boy's fantasies about his future get wilder and wilder, Hargis' hilarious, detailed illustrations in clear line and watercolor extend the uproarious nonsense, as in a scene in which the boy imagines himself as a "big sumo wrestler or hedge-fund investor / Or smelly pit-sniffing deodorant tester." The pictures also show the boy's strong bond with his great-grandfather, who, at 103, is still not sure what he wants to be. Along with the imaginative play, the farce and parody make this a rare book with appeal to both kids and adults.

School Library Journal (Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2011)

Gr 1-3 Eight-year-old Billy has an active imagination and a host of interests. So, when it's time for show-and-tell, he can barely contain himself as he describes, nonstop, what he'd like to be when he grows up. His career choices include chef, snail trainer, lathe operator, gorilla masseuse, an artist whose preferred medium is chocolate mousse, sumo wrestler, pickle inspector...and on and on. Mrs. Krupp's attempts to call "time up" are unsuccessful. He's just getting started. Billy is still pondering vocational choices at lunchtime when he comes up with one more possibilitya great teacher like Mrs. Krupp. The story has a nice premise, but it doesn't quite live up to its potential. In addition, the rhyming text can be distracting. Well-done, realistic and colorful watercolor and ink illustrations accompany the story, but overall this book is a supplemental purchase. Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA