The Magic Word

A hilarious take on what a magic word really is from Mac Barnett, the award-winning, bestselling author of Sam and Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn, and Elise Parsley, the bestselling author/illustrator of If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don't! and If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't!

When Paxton C. Heymeyer’s babysitter tells him to say the magic word, she could never have imagined that what would happen next would be a walrus chasing her, an elephant in the living room playing cards, and a full water park and moat in the front yard. And that’s just the beginning…

You can have anything you want in the whole world.

But only if you say The Magic Word…Alakazoomba.

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Understated illustrations and prose seamlessly construct an enchanting and mysterious tale.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Klassen’s deadpan, stylized illustrations impeccably complement Barnett’s quirky droll writing.” - School Library Journal (starred review)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Klassen’s pacing, especially the mostly wordless sequence when the box floats back to Annabelle on a triangle of an iceberg, is impeccable. The final spread, all light and yarn-covered tree limbs, brings Barnett’s clever, quiet yarn full circle, to a little girl and a town, now colorful and happy.” - The Horn Book (starred review)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Reading like a droll fairy tale, this Barnett-Klassen collaboration is both seamless and magical. The spare, elegant text and art are also infused with plenty of deadpan humor. Quirky and wonderful, this story quietly celebrates a child’s ingenuity and her ability to change the world around her.” - Booklist (starred review)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “There’s nothing to say but perfect.” - Lane Smith, New York Times bestselling author of IT'S A BOOK

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “In this absolutely charming fable, one girl’s generosity, with the help of a never ending supply of yarn, change a drab little town into a place with color and cheer. Even when threatened by a dreadful archduke, all turns out for the best. Jon Klassen’s illustrations are the perfect complement to a wonderful story. I love this book!” - Amie Mechler-Hickson, Boswell Book Company (Milwaukee, WI)

Praise for GUESS AGAIN: “An especially fun book to share” - School Library Journal

Praise for GUESS AGAIN: “A funny, absurdist take on guessing books…twisted good fun.”- - Publishers Weekly

“The stuff of kids’ wildest dreams” - Kirkus Reviews

“A subversive take on the topic of manners that still manages to deliver a message about human decency.” - The Horn Book

“Barnett’s narration hits all the right wry notes…while Parsley’s expressive, exaggerated drawings give the story the tight narrative arc, visual breeziness, and snappy comic rhythms.” - Publishers Weekly

“[A] wild, relatable fantasy...This telling will resonate with (and tickle) the intended audience.” - Booklist

Praise for THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE: “A marvel.... Clock is a house-shaped board book chock full of mystery, humor and stunning artwork. Oh, and there are also clues that point to 12 emerald-encrusted numbers buried across the country, just in case the visuals don’t hook you (which is unlikely).” - San Francisco Chronicle

Praise for THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE: “I know I’ll be handing my copy to the kids in the bookclub I run with the hope that they find a way to solve it themselves. Because even if they don’t solve it, they’re going to have a heckuva great time obsessing over its wackiness. Fun fun fun.” - School Library Journal

Praise for THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE: “Clock seamlessly blends the playfulness of the kids’ books we wished we had and the sophistication of [McSweeney’s] trademark design.” - Time Out Chicago

Praise for THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE: “Part The Westing Game, part Masquerade, this board book mystery lures readers in with its pentagonal shape, dry humor, and pages of intricate details.” - Publishers Weekly

Praise for OH NO! (Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World): “Barnett’s telegraphic text packs wicked humor into economical, comic book-style lines.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for OH NO! (Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World): “Santat’s brilliantly hued digital illustrations are the perfect foil for Barnett’s almost-wordless tale of a science project gone awry. A must-have.”- - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Extra Yarn is one of the rare picture books that makes you just feel better about the world. Our world, like Annabelle’s storybook land, may sometimes seem rather bleak and colorless. But with a spark of creativity, some sharing, and some work, both her environment (and ours) can be seen as beautiful, and interconnected. Mac Barnett’s text manages to feel both classic and contemporary, and I can’t think of an illustrator I’d rather see clothe the world in sweaters than Jon Klassen-just the rabbit on the cover is worth the price of admission. I love this simple yet powerful fable.” - Robert McDonald, Book Stall (Chicago, IL)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “In Annabelle’s chilly village, it’s a spare and gray season. The little girl finds a box of yarn, and knits herself a soft, warm, and colorful sweater-and then, it turns out, there is still plenty of yarn in the box. No matter how many sweaters Annabelle knits and gives away, her box is still full. Mac Barnett and John Klassen beautifully present this simple, profound fable about the inexhaustible resources of the heart.”- - Susan Kundhardt, Book Passage (San Francisco, CA)

Praise for EXTRA YARN: “Whenever I look at Extra Yarn I feel warm and content. There’s nothing out of place - I wouldn’t change a word or an illustration - and it makes me feel cozy and hopeful. Who knows? Maybe our dreary surroundings can be improved, one small, colorful stitch at a time.” - Patty Norman, Copperfield's Books (California)

Praise for BILLY TWITTERS AND HIS BLUE WHALE PROBLEM: “Definitely funny and slyly subversive.” - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Praise for BILLY TWITTERS AND HIS BLUE WHALE PROBLEM: “A headlong plunge into surrealism ensues when Billy Twitters’s parents punish him by giving him a blue whale. The cleverness is in the idea’s literal-mindedness - Billy thinking ‘I feel like something’s watching me’ as he eats his cereal, one very large eye visible behind him, and then hauling the whale to school on his bicycle. It’s not supposed to make sense, and, amusingly, it doesn’t.” - The New York Times

Praise for THE CLOCK WITHOUT A FACE: “Ready to get your mind blown? Then dig into this.” - Booklist (starred review)