Whatever

It’s a simple story, but it is never the story and always the way it is told, and I am happy to report that Bee, a British illustrator, does well on both the text and illustration fronts.

As the father parades more and more odder and odder things before Billy, “whatever” begins to seem less like a sarcastic put-down and more like a slangy, calming mantra, remedying the overeager theatrics of desperate parenting. When the tiger arrives, Billy’s “whatever” is accompanied by a shrug and a small smile as his father stalks off; the child is not unimpressed with the tiger, he’s merely facing the wrong way.

Daniel Handler, New York Times

Annoying children (or the annoying moments of almost every child) — who think that anything spectacular is less intriguing than their own navel — may not find William Bee and his words very amusing, while the rest of the humanity will admire it. The moral of this story doesn’t fall under political correctness for children, and it will serve almost everyone, regardless of their age.

Sara Figueiredo Costa, Expresso news