Adults never misbehave. They don’t yell or cry or bump into things or lose their temper. They are never, ever wrong about anything. They’re never messy or late or rude or forgetful. They don’t litter or waste time on their phones or neglect their chores, and they definitely don’t burp. Children should really take note and try to be every bit as good as the adults around them. On every page, as adults make all of the aforementioned mistakes and then some, the illustrator has hidden children with cameras and binoculars and spy gear and disguises, peeking out from hiding spaces and taking notes about it all. Although certain adults may possibly take issue with the permissive and lenient messaging, overall it’s a treatise of humility to children from their fallible adults, an admission of gross imperfection told through humorous imagery, and children will appreciate the opportunity to acknowledge that adults are capable of being great big babies.

Grown-ups, according to this collection of advice, have impeccable manners and never make mistakes, and children should be just like them. However, the illustrations, featuring children equipped with cameras and boom mics in the periphery, tell a very different story. Cali, author of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to School…, offers a humorous take on the hypocrisy of adults and their demands of children. For instance, in one image, an adult is at the dining room table completely distracted by his phone. Chaud’s illustrations are the real star, extending to even the end pages with famous paintings, such as the Mona Lisa, making silly faces. The images are colorful and playful. Finding the spying children on each page is an added bonus.VERDICT A fun, simple, and goofy read for both adults and kids, and a must-have for fans of these creators’ other books.