Little Critter and Cookie Monster: Crusaders For Healthy Eating?

I found myself somewhat annoyed recently when I heard the announcement that Cookie Monster would be renouncing his constant cookie-eating after being taught that cookies are merely "sometimes foods". He would be learning about healthier alternatives, like fruits and vegetables - though I seem to recall several sketches to that end 20 years ago. Go ahead and encourage him to vary his diet a little, but for crying out loud, let him continue to have a name that makes sense. I haven't watched many episodes of Sesame Street since then so I can't really comment on how forcefully this new initiative was enacted. Is the furry, blue, gravel-voiced confection inhaler now the Monster Formerly Known as Cookie? I don't know. But I couldn't help but think of him as I read Mercer Mayer's Good For Me and You.

Little Critter is a fun-loving first-grader of indeterminate species. In this book, his teacher, Miss Kitty, gives the class a lesson in proper eating habits, and it really sinks in for some reason, especially when it's complemented by the gym teacher's emphasis on getting enough exercise. Suddenly, Little Critter is the most overzealous of champions for a healthy lifestyle. He prepares a lunch rich in vegetation for his family. He gets them to join him on a long bike ride. He convinces his friends to forego video games in favor of a rousing game of football. And he can hardly contain his excitement when he learns there's a big race coming up in Critterville.

I'm all for imparting these sorts of practical lessons, but Mayer's books are generally so fun and full of mischief, I found the level of preachiness in this one annoying. Little Critter is a shining model of the way teachers and parents want children to approach exercise and eating habits. He does backslide a little, but not enough to cause any problems or make us doubt his total investment in this diet and exercise regimen. Even when he delays racing practice for a snack, his munchies of choice are grapes, so it's hard to fault him much. Basically, in this book, Little Critter is too perfect. And forgive me, but I'm getting a little tired of chubbiness bordering on being a capital offense in America. You can get away with almost any other vice, but a grain of gluttony, a sliver of sloth, and you're labeled for life. And heaven help those whose metabolism labors against them daily...

Good For Me and You has a worthwhile message, and Mayer's illustrations are just as entertaining as always, so that makes up for the sanctimonious text somewhat. It's a good sort of book to keep in school, perhaps to read to children during story time in order to reinforce a lesson about eating well and exercising. But the heavy-handed approach leads me to believe children won't find it as fun as most Little Critter outings.