First published 1996
Benjy lives with his diploma-displaying Mummy, his card-playing Daddy who hides behind the television, and Sid the family airedale in their comfortable home. The boy never misbehaves, never speaks rudely to his mother, and sweetly kisses his father even after accidentally hitting him with toy blocks. His relentlessly pleasant behavior and sickeningly nice games prove so insufferable that even the family dog escapes to a garbage box in the backyard. The household maintains its artificial harmony until a good fairy appears and offers to grant the deserving child one wish. Benjy makes his choice, but the results turn out far different than anyone expected. This satirical tale skewers the myth of the perfect child, revealing how excessive goodness can become its own form of torment for everyone involved.
Genres: fiction, satire, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: intimate, satirical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, unreliable-narrator
Period: 20th-century
Hardcover · Turtleback Books