If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't!

Magnolia says DON'T!

by Elise Parsley

If your mom says to get ready to play at the beach, she means with a boat, or a Frisbee, or a shovel. She is NOT talking about the piano. But Magnolia is a little girl with a big idea, determination, and one very heavy upright piano that, she insists, she needs to take with her. What's the worst that can happen? In a riotous series of mishaps, Magnolia quickly learns that--not surprisingly--a piano doesn't mix well with sand, sun, and seagulls!

Genres: Picture Books, Humor, Childrens, Storytime, Music, Summer, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published May 3, 2016

Reviews

[Archit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beaches and pianos don't go hand in hand. For those who don't know this, If You Ever Want to Bring series is a must read!

[Matt]

Ever thought about what mom really means when she says 'bring something to play with at the beach'? Well, now you need not wonder, as this story ponders just how useful it would be to bring a piano to PLAY at the beach. From how to get this weighty toy out of the house and to the sand, through to what to do when the gull divebomb you at lunch, and even how to wash a sullied piano in the water, there is no stone left unturned in this story. Children the world over can sleep a little better, knowing the fallout of bringing their favourite eighty-eight key toy with them to the waterfront. Neo was so pleased to learn all this, as he started his piano lessons this past week. Now he knows that he will NOT be busking for change next summer with a piano at the beach!!

[Steve Holden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently discovered this author and her series. They're very cute, imaginative tales. I'd put this one much in the same style as the famed "If you give a . . . " series. There's a cause and effect, the premise silly, and the results are often hilarious to read and look at. I connected to this silly title and story further with the personal story the author shares about playing piano herself and spending a lot of time with it as a passion of hers. I never played piano, nor do I have any musical talent, but the idea of being passionate about something and as a child also loving to go to something such as a beach, but being unable to bring the two together. I don't know . . . the idea struck with me, and of so many times I've thought through something and voiced aloud ' "I wish I could do this and that at the same time." My childhood ones could've been spun into a clever story concept like this! My adult ones . . . not so much. "Take a long run and read at the same time." Adults solve these dilemmas - now I have playaways and audiobooks!

[Melki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to laugh when Magnolia's mother lets her bring the piano to the beach, but cautions, "You'd better not lose it!" And, of course, she DOES!

[Maeve · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young girl is determined to bring her piano to the beach; but once she gets there, she realizes it wasn't the best idea...and will tell you all the reasons you shouldn't bring a piano to the beach.

Hilarious book that is great for storytime or sharing with a classroom (grades K-2).

Storytime:
Beaches
Instruments / Music

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and funny. It's the second book in a series I've never read, so I'm looking forward to getting the other three from the library ASAP.

[Papaphilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

If You Ever Want to Bring a Piano to the Beach, Don't! is a real scream. Elise Parsley takes a silly concept and runs wild with it and it works beautifully. The artwork is hysterical and just pounds home the pain of bringing a piano to the beach. I just loved it.

[Emily Cait · Rating 5 out of 5]

I totally relate to this narrator. I was always the child who found "creative" ways to play with my toys. If I had a piano, I probably would have attempted to take it with me :P This was such a fun and silly read.

[Adele · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me it is the reactions of the mom that make this book enjoyable. That and the marvelous, magical shell.

[Azin · Rating 3 out of 5]

مگنولیا تو این جلد،
پیانوی نازنیش رو با خودش به ساحل میبره
و در نهایت پیانو به فنا میره!
ولی حداقل بچه یاد میگیره توی هر موقعیت و‌ مکانی باید با وسایل مناسب همون موقعیت، بازی کنه..!
D:

[Mark Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Magnolia is back, and this time, she’s decided to bring the piano on a family beach day. What could be better than that? Her mom is concerned that Magnolia will lose it, but that won’t be an issue. Or will it?

While this book has the same wacky fun that Elise used in her first picture book, I didn’t have the same reaction to it. I just couldn’t buy the craziness, maybe because I’m so familiar with pianos. However, I think the target audience will love it. The picture are wonderful, and the situations that Magnolia gets into are still absurd. Once again, the book is actually narrated in the second person.

Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weirdly, her previous book about bringing an alligator to school was more believable, in a goofy way, than this story was. The artwork was gorgeous, but as a reader it felt like the author felt compelled to write a sequel, and was struggling with the story. For example, the piano is alternately heavy or light, depending on the sight gag involved. Some kids may notice that.
I think it reads better if you take it as her imagining that she's brought the piano to the beach. If everything is just in the little girl's head, it makes a LOT more sense. I'm not sure that kids will come up with that interpretation, though.
Still, it's not bad, and the silliness of the story will appeal to at least some kids.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love this simply for the idea of bringing a piano to the beach. It makes me smile at the humor. And there is even a little bit of a lesson (not quite the word I want, but something close) at the end. Magnolia's teeth scare me a bit, but otherwise I enjoyed the illustrations. I think preschool will enjoy this one.

1/17/17 Closer in B preschool theme. They loved it! Laughed at the title right off. Loved the pictures. Loved seeing what happened to the piano. Enjoyed fishing with me to try to get it back. And loved the ending. None of it was over their heads and then one of the moms asked to check it out so all of her kids could read it. Total success!

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

So bringing a piano to the beach is a bad idea... it's hard to move, seagulls and sandwiches don't mix well with pianos and you might lose it.

Why I started this book: Parlsey is a darling author! I love her books.

Why I finished it: I can't decide who in my family will love this more... the nieces and nephews taking piano lessons that live near a beach or my sister who teaches piano lessons.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A richly imagined warning not to bring a piano to the beach. Text reads similarly to If You Give a Mouse a Cookie in that one decision leads to another and another and so on.

Digital artwork is humrous and expressive; I REALLY loved the image of the seagulls descending on the little girl with the sandwich.

Great seasonal fun for PreK-2.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't bring a piano to the beach. You'll probably lose it.

Absolute delightful absurdity. If you're in a bad mood, read this book. It's sure to put a smile on your face.

[Karen Arendt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun cautionary tale with tones of Numeroff's If You Give a Mouse series

[Casandria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious!!! And wise...
Silly

[J.P. Sirro · Rating 4 out of 5]

**Rating: 3.8/5 stars**

**Absurdly Fun and Surprisingly Practical Advice**

What a quirky and entertaining read! This book takes the simple premise of “don’t bring a piano to the beach” and runs wild with it in the most delightful way. The humor is wonderfully absurd - because really, who would think to bring a piano to the beach in the first place? Yet somehow, the author makes it feel like essential advice.

The illustrations are bright, chaotic, and perfectly capture the ridiculousness of the situation. Kids will crack up at all the things that go hilariously wrong when you ignore this very specific warning. The cascading chaos is both funny and cleverly teaches cause-and-effect in an entertaining package.

I love that this book sneaks in some genuine problem-solving lessons while being completely silly. It gets kids thinking about why certain ideas might not work out, all while giggling at the mayhem unfolding on each page.

The only reason I’m not giving it a full 4 stars is that the joke, while funny, does wear a bit thin by the end. Some pages felt slightly repetitive, and I wished there were a few more unexpected twists in the chaos. Also, the ending wrapped up a tad too neatly for my taste.

Still, it’s a wonderful pick for kids who love absurd humor and parents who don’t mind reading something genuinely funny for the hundredth time. Great for ages 4-8!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

[Ansley Cumberland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story is about a girl named Magnolia who, when her mom tells her to get ready for a day the beach, decides to bring along her piano! Her mom's only retort? "Don't lose it!" Magnolia ends up running into several challenges during their day at the beach... but finds exactly what she needed.

This was a silly, fun book! Magnolia is a classic child with a big idea--and she's not afraid to make it happen! The author fails to mention how hard transporting a piano to the beach might actually be -- but considering the point of the story is to NOT take your piano to the beach, it probably doesn't matter too much! This book has a couple counterpart books, such as "If You Ever Want to Bring an Alligator to School, Don't!" This author certainly has a sense of humor and enjoys creating fun children's books!

I would recommend this book for a classroom. Books don't always have to have a deep, moral lesson beneath the surface--while those books are certainly valuable, there's just something about a silly book! As class discussion, the teacher can ask his/her class to share a time they had a big idea. Did anyone question your idea, or help you come up with a better way to make it happen? How did it turn out?

[Kristen Adair · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book a little girl wants so much to take her piano to the beach. But she ends up running into some problems as she brings it. First she has trouble pushing it all the way there. Then when she is eating her lunch on the piano she is swarmed by sea gulls and they poop all over the piano. So she pushes it into the ocean to take a bath, but it floats away. And that is why you should never bring your piano to the beach.
This was a pretty simple and cute little book. The story linen is pretty simple so I think it would definitely be used for more younger elementary kids. I wouldn't mind having it on my shelf for kids or reading for like a start to the morning read or something, but I am not sure what lesson I would make from it.
If I were to read it to the class I might have them write their own funny stories about something funny that happened to them on vacation. This could just be like a warm up to get them writing, or if they are in kindergarten they can just take turns standing up and sharing the funny stories. This would just be a fun fresh start to the day.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

How many parents have told their child to get ready for a day's excursion and find their child dragging a suitcase of miscellaneous stuff that has nothing to do with the trip? That is at the heart of this wonderfully humorous picture book. Magnolia insists on bringing her piano to the beach and her mother responds "you'd better not lose it!" And the rest is up to Magnolia including dragging it to the beach, keeping seagull poop off of it, and washing the poop off. An entertaining picture book that will be a fun book to share before going to the beach.

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

In my opinion, this book with its cover illustration and its declarative title speaks for itself. I LOVE this series and the illustrations make me literally laugh out loud. It's a great read for all ages and it offers an engaging read -- one may ask the audience, for example, *WHY* one would not bring a piano to the beach and what *could* happen if one did?

I highly recommend checking out this and the other books in the "Magnolia says Don't" series!

[Patricia Copeland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genre: contemporary realistic fiction, grades 1-3
This book was a hoot! I can imagine my class laughing up a storm as I read this to them. The illustrations are also super fun and creative. I love the idea of bringing a piano to the beach and all the things that could potentially go wrong. Parsley thought of things I couldn't have in a million years! What a fun book to read as a class, I can see students really getting into the wackiness.

[May Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is another book I browsed in my go-to bookshop in the mall and I like the illustration first and foremost. This story gives a good story to headstrong kids who wants to bring precious belongings everywhere. Lesson here is if you are determined to bring them along with you, you better make sure to take real good care of it or it will be lost. But the ending is sweet and snarky so bottom line is learn to be responsible.

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magnolia is a little girl that is going to the beach and is determine to take her piano despite her mom saying don't. She insists to take it anyway and many things happened to the piano until she sees it drifting away into the sea. Now what, Magnolia decides to use a fishing line to get her piano back, but instead she finds something else.... This book has beautiful pictures.

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the deadpan humor of this author's books. The things this child thinks to do is very often in other children's thoughts but not carried out to this extent. How mother drags the piano along with the child in the wagon is hilarious. And the ending when the child finds something to take home with her is so funny. And the piano? You need to read this with a child and enjoy.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't take a piano to the beach! SO much can happen to that piano! Fun story to talk about going to the beach with a wild item to take along.
Couldn't help but read it in the tone of If you Give ... series which took a little away from the book, not an overly original way to write, but the idea was fun none the less an truly enjoy the pictures.

[Janis · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best part about this book? The mom's indifference to her choice to bring the piano, but telling her not to lose it. Also, her mom won't let her pawn off pushing the piano to someone else. If she wants it at the beach, she has to bring it herself! So many logistical impossibilities in this book, but hilarious consequences for her choice.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful children's story with gorgeous illustrations! I miss reading books to my girls; they would have loved this one. 5 stars for quick bedtime story and even more so for the beautifully illustrated pages.