Stead, P. (2010). A sick day for aos mcgee. New York. A Neal Porer Book Roaring Brook Press.
Summary
A story about a man who works at the zoo who spends every day with his animal friends entertaining them. He becomes sick one day and can not go to his job. All of the animals hitch a ride on the bus and go to his house to cheer him up.
Reviews
American Library Association
According to ALA, the illustrator is the "artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children."
The story is about a man who spends time with different animals at the zoo every day. When he is sick one day and can't make it, the animals decide to pay him a visit.
School Library Journal
Sometimes children’s book reviewers bandy about the term “classic” like it was some kind of verbal shuttlecock. There’s nothing that raises the savvy readers’ eyebrows faster than to see some wordsmith drooling profusely over “a new classic” or a book merely “destined to become a classic”. Even worse is when they start calling a book “old-fashioned”. Nine times out of then what they’re talking about is the fact that the book parrots some picture book title of the past. That’s the crazy thing about A Sick Day for Amos McGee. It doesn’t parrot anyone, and when you read it you feel like you’ve know the book your whole life. Could have been written last year, ten years ago, or fifty. Doesn’t matter because the word “timeless” may as well be stamped all over each and every doggone page. If you want to give a child a book that will remain with them always (and lead to decades of folks growing up and desperately trying to relocate it with the children’s librarians of the future) this is the one that you want. Marvelous
It’s strange to think that author Philip Stead wrote both this and last year’s Creamed Tuna Fish and Peas on Toast. Not that the latter was a bad book or anything, mind you, but that was a case where the protagonist had to be a perpetual crankypants. The character of Amos simply couldn’t be more different. He’s like a cross between your favorite grandpa and Mr. Rogers. I read through this book several times to get down the cadence of Mr. Stead’s wordplay too. He’s prone to terms like “amble”. He parallels Amos’s activities in the first half with similar activities with the animals are taking care of him in the second. He knows when to leave sections wordless. And at the end, the “goodnight” section sort of makes this an ideal bedtime book for small fry. Practically invokes Goodnight Moon it does.
The New York Times Book Review
Observant readers will notice tiny surprises hidden in plain sight: a red balloon, a tiny mouse and sparrow popping up here and there in the story. Erin E. Stead, the illustrator, overlays her pencil sketches with gentle tones of pink, peach, blue and green, and bright red spots that belie the deceptive ordinariness of the text."
Washington Post
“Thick, creamy paper and a muted palette add to the gentle resonance of a story that ends with everyone tucked in at last for a sweet night's sleep.”
Time Out New York Kids
“It's hard to believe that this is Erin Stead's first children's book-her woodcut and oil-ink artwork is so warmly appealing that she seems like an old pro.”
BookPage
“Here is a book that exemplifies that happy combination where words and pictures carry equal weight and yet somehow create a whole that defies arithmetic.”
Publishers Weekly, STARRED review
“Newcomer Erin Stead's elegant woodblock prints, breathtaking in their delicacy, contribute to the story's tranquility and draw subtle elements to viewers' attention.”
Kirkus Reviews, STARRED review"Erin E. Stead’s beautifully wrought woodblock prints and pencil work create almost painfully expressive characters...This gentle, ultimately warm story acknowledges the care and reciprocity behind all good friendships."
Horn Book Magazine
"Erin Stead's attentively detailed pencil and woodblock illustrations reveal character and enhance the cozy mood of Philip Stead's gentle text."
School Library Journal
“Whether read individually or shared, this gentle story will resonate with youngsters.”
Booklist
"Like the story, the quiet pictures, rendered in pencil and woodblock color prints, are both tender and hilarious… The extension of the familiar pet-bonding theme will have great appeal, especially in the final images of the wild creatures snuggled up with Amos in his cozy home.”
Activities
Accelerated Reader Quiz
Visual Motifs. After reading A Sick Day for Amos McGee, read Goodnight Moon and Goodnight Gorilla aloud to your class. Many may be familiar with these books, but many may not. Ask students to compare the illustrations in these books. They will be likely to notice the red balloon, rabbit, clock, mouse, striped pajamas, and other similar details. Ask students to speculate why the present day authors might have chosen to incorporate images from the classic Goodnight Moon. To extend their understanding of intertextuality, you might choose to read aloud a book that features references to other stories, such as Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg or Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein (a 2011 Caldecott Honor book)
Grown Up Sick Days. What happens when the teacher is sick? Or Mom? Or Dad? After reading aloud A Sick Day for Amos McGee, share with students either Miss Bindergarten Stays Home from Kindergarten or Taking Care of Mama. How do the characters in each book feel? What do they do? How do they help the adult who is sick? Have children create a “How To” book for how to act when a teacher is absent or a parent or caregiver is sick.
Caring for Others. A strong message about caring behavior. Have the class discussion about what it means to care for others. Ask students to give examples of how they care for loved ones, friends, and community members. Invite students to write and illustrate short narratives about caring behavior. Publish these entries in a class book.
ALSC Notable Children's Book
Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
NYPL Book for Reading and Sharing
Charlotte Zolotow Award / Honor Book
Capitol Choices Noteworthy Titles for Children and Teens
CPL: Chicago Public Library Best of the Best
AwardsCaldecott Medal 2011 
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