ALA Booklist (Sat Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2014)

Somehow Tippy's bedroom is a terrible mess every morning. When she wakes up in her sunny orange room, there are animals and debris everywhere! How does it happen? Tippy is not sure, but as night descends in a lovely muted blue palette and she drifts off to sleep, she starts sleepwalking right out her window, through a garden, and into a huge hole in the ground d all the while, animals are following her. An angry crab clasps the hem of her nightshirt; the crab snaps up a flower; the flower attracts a bee; the bee looks like a tasty snack to a big-bellied frog; and so on; until there is a mole, a bear, and many others in tow. Soon Tippy brings the coterie of creatures back home, and another orange morning begins with What is this mess? Carré's whimsical story, told in spare, large panels, is just simple enough for beginning comics readers, but the surreal, blocky figures set on beautifully minimal backgrounds are a pleasure at any age.

Horn Book (Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2014)

Tippy sleepwalks, attracting followers on her somnambulistic ramblings ` la the Pied Piper. In the morning beleaguered Mama wonders, "What is this MESS?!"; Tippy replies, "All I remember...is falling ASLEEP!" Carri skillfully employs a limited color palette, with warm oranges underscoring the messy mayhem of Tippy's room and cool midnight blues and slate grays providing a serene backdrop for Tippy's late-night adventures.

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

Carré (Heads or Tails) brings her talents to a younger audience with the story of a girl-s somnambulism and the chaos it creates. Except for a few scenes bathed in the pale oranges of sunset and sunrise, Carré uses a palette of steely gray-blues as bedheaded Tippy strides out the front door-eyes closed, and the trace of a smile on her lips. Tippy narrates in suppositional speech bubbles (she-s a sleep-talker, too). -Maybe I walked out into the garden,- she muses, doing just that as a protective crab clings to her nightgown, -because I wanted to hop across the lily pads.- As Tippy wanders through Carré-s panels, falling down a -big hole- and emerging in a cactus patch, she acquires a train of animals that leave her bedroom in disarray. -What is this mess?- her mother shouts the next morning. -I don-t know, Mama,- Tippy replies as a goat chews on her hair. -All I remember... is falling asleep!- Carré-s curvy cartoons brim with quirky humor, and although Tippy is unconscious throughout her adventure, it-s evident that she-s the sort of girl whose waking life is plenty interesting, too. Ages 4-8. (Feb.)

School Library Journal (Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 CST 2014)

K-Gr 3 This quirky comic for early readers offers simple panels with easy-to-find details and monochromatic color schemes-orange for the day and shades of blue for the night. When Tippy wakes in the morning, her room is a mess of shells, plants, and animals that have somehow found their way into her house. Readers will be able to guess at the answer as the girl recounts what could have happened: she sleepwalks outdoors, seemingly taking a night stroll, and gathers a following of animals who watch over her throughout her nocturnal adventure. Consistent with the Toon Book line, tips for reading comics with children appear in the back matter. Carr&3;'s retro and dreamy illustrations readily lend themselves to visual literacy practices: kids can "ham it up" with sound effects (bumps, scrapes, and animal sounds), and parents and educators can let children guess about the context of the pictures. Joanna K. Fabicon, Los Angeles Public Library