Tiny Cedric

by Sally Lloyd-Jones, Rowboat Watkins (Illustrator)

“The grouchiest character since the Grinch." — School Library Journal, starred review
 
A hilarious, heartwarming picture book from a New York Times bestselling author and award-winning illustrator about a tiny king who grows into a big-hearted monarch after he banishes almost his entire court from the palace.
 
Tiny Cedric, King ME the First does not like being small. AT ALL. So he decides to banish anyone taller than him from his palace. Which is everyone, basically. The only ones left are the babies. And now they’re in charge of the Royal Duties! 

How will Cedric cope—especially now that he must kiss boo-boos and read bedtime stories? Will he become a kinder, gentler, BIGGER king?

Filled with colorful illustrations and ensuing hi-jinks, this charming picture book is perfect for children of all ages AND sizes!

Genres: Picture Books, Humor, Childrens, Royalty, Fiction, Emotion

44 pages, Hardcover

Published February 8, 2022

About the author

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Reviews

[Katelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

King Cedric is tired of being small, so banishes anyone taller than him from his castle. Unfortunately, this leaves Cedric with a castle full of babies. There's not much of a moral here, but it is very funny.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although it is unlikely that anyone is as small as Tiny Cedric, a king with a very large inferiority complex, young readers will recognize his characteristics and behavior in some of their classmates and maybe even in themselves. Because this ruler simply cannot abide having anyone taller than he is around him, he banishes everyone around him, including his servants. This leaves him with no one around except babies. Obviously, they are too young and inexperienced to fulfill the duties the servants once did. In fact, because they are babies, they have plenty of needs of their own. In a humorous reversal, Cedric finds himself tending to their needs rather than the other way around. Exhausted from tying shoes, kissing their pains away, and reading bedtime stories, the king decides to revoke his banishment and bring his servants back. He's learned his lesson while gaining some new playmates and having fun. The text keeps readers guessing as it builds up to its inevitable conclusion, and the illustrations, drawn with pencil, graphite, colored pencil and digital and traditional watercolor, are filled with interesting details such as the king's burgeoning head of curly orange hair, and movement. My favorite double-page spread consists of Cedric's library featuring book titles such as "Moi," "Growth Mindset," "Leg Stretches," "Stand Tall," "Dream Big," and "Long Legs in One Month," to highlight only a few. These visual aspects of this picture book alongside the text will tickle the fancy of many young readers and provide some amusement for older ones.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

First sentence: Once upon a time on the shortest street with the longest name in the highest palace with the hugest throne sat the tiniest king. His name was Cedric, King Me the First. And he didn't like being small. At all.

Premise/plot: Tiny Cedric learns a lesson...the hard way. Tired of being the small one, he decides, one day, to "banish" everyone who is taller....leaving a kingdom of BABIES.

My thoughts: This one was a hoot! I really enjoyed this one. It was just a silly, joyous book. I loved seeing Cedric interact with the babies! I loved seeing what the babies (and the king) would do next. Yes, there's a lesson to be learned. But it's also packed with humor.

Definitely recommended.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiny Cedric is a tiny king with a GINORMOUS ego. A ginormous fragile ego. He's all about me, and pretty much only me. He can't stand being around people who remind him how short he is. So he banishes everyone from the kingdom taller than him, which leaves him with only babies to run the kingdom for him. And, well, you'll just have to read it to find out how that goes.

A humorous little folk tale/tall tale with a powerful reminder that the best cure for selfishness is to get your mind off yourself and on to someone else who needs some help. The illustrations in this are quite funny, and extremely entertaining. They complement the text well for a fabulous little picture book tale. Read this to kids who need to get their minds off of the mes, and anyone needing a laugh.

Notes on content: There's an illustration of a naked baby but it doesn't have any anatomy detailed. It's much more funny than scandalous.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tiny Cedric is a king who banishes everyone who is taller than him. This basically rules out everyone who resides in the kingdom besides, the babies. He calls upon the babies to handle the "Royal Duties", however, Cedric finds himself having to take care of the duties on his own because they are well... babies! To his astonishment, Cedric forms a bond with the babies, but realizes he needs the help from their parents to take care of them, so he issues a decree calling all mommies and daddies back to the kingdom. The children grow up and, obviously, outgrow the king, but Cedric is "far too happy to even notice" because he enjoys being around the kids. Cute story with whimsical illustrations.

[Brandon Dyer (Children's Librarian) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny and goofy fairy tale story about a tiny king, named Cedric, who is upset that he is not taller like other citizens in his town. Out of spite, Cedric orders all adults to leave the town because he does not want to see any more taller people. He is glad with himself, at first, but is horrified when he discovers that all the servants and town folks are babies. How will Cedric cope and survive this new society full of babies! This once upon a time story teaches youth to love themselves and not to base everything of looks or differences. I really enjoyed this picture book and will being using this book multiple times when I do read out louds.

[Roben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cedric is the King! King Me the First. Cedric is also rather small. Or, more precisely, short. This bothers him. A lot. So - he banishes everyone that is taller than he is, builds a wall and installs mirrors that make him look much taller than he actually is. But there's a problem. Tiny Cedric now has no servants or any adults. He only has the babies. He orders the babies to do all of the tasks his servants would normally do - but, well, they are babies. So Cedric ends up taking care of the babies and, in the process, learns to care about someone other than himself. He invites everyone to come back to the castle with the knowledge that it really doesn't matter if you are small.

[Read Ribbet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lloyd-Jones creates an interesting title character Tiny Cedric who is so ashamed of his size that he banishes every tall person from his kingdom leaving only babies behind to handle the royal duties. Readers will enjoy seeing how the babies fail at the task of serving Cedric and actually cause Cedric to work very hard at taking care of their needs. Cedric does discover the errors of his way and finds a way to restore order while being less concerned about his size. Walkins has created interesting illustrations which often include details -- like articles from the newspaper -- that will also capture the readers' attention. This would be a fun read aloud in any classroom.

[Arminzerella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tiny King Cedric has tiny king syndrome and can't stand it anymore. He issues a proclamation removing everyone from his palace taller than he is. Which basically leaves him and a bunch of babies. The babies try to take on new roles as advisors and cooks and scribes, but, well, they're babies! So Cedric ends up looking after them instead. This turns out to be a more rewarding (and exhausting) experience than he'd anticipated, but he soldiers on - eventually recalling all the babies' caregivers back - and everyone lives happily ever after (Cedric has more important things to focus on and seems to have outgrown his narcissism). Wildly fantastic plot, but cute.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possible contender for the Mock Caldecott awards in January 2023. Just a cute tale about a tiny king that tried to pretend he was bigger than he was. He finally decreed that anyone taller than him must leave the castle. Then he realized that he had no one to cook, clean or care for him. So, he attempts to get the babies...who are still there...to do all the chores but realizes that he is really caring for them. What's a king to do. Read this adorable story to your young ones and find out his final solution!

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tiny Cedric, King Me the First, doesn't like being tiny and declares a law that no one could be taller than him, leaving behind only children. Rather than the children taking care of him, Cedric has to take care of them. Eventually he invites the mommies and daddies back, but Cedric still enjoys having fun with the children, even though they become taller than him. I thought Cedric was a boy king who would grow up right alongside the other children...I also didn't like that only the parents were invited back...

[Bozhena Levine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the Random House Children’s Books for an advanced electronic copy of this book. This silly story is about King Cedric who didn’t like when someone was taller than him, so he made a decree to banish everyone taller than him from the kingdom. The following morning he was faced with the consequences of his decision. After a few days, he learned an important lesson and became a much better, kinder king. Great as a read-aloud and as a conversation starter about diversity.

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book as an adult reader for the AR Diamond Book Award. It was very odd to say the least. This little "king" suffers from a very large inferiority complex. He is small and doesn't like being small compared to everyone else. He gets rid of all of the "big" people around him, is forced to care for babies that are the only "small" ones left in the castle, and then he decides to bring everyone back. The kids grow up and he learns to be ok with it and still play with them.

[Tee-Hee Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay- this book is HILARIOUSLY entertaining! You will laugh so hard. My niece and nephew loved this, and so did me and my sister who read it to them. The illustrations and cover are inviting, and I 100% recommend this picture book to those with young kids, or who just want a laugh.

Overall Rating:

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5 Stars

[Cindy Dobrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Consequences of making a rash decision...King Cedric learns a lesson the hard way when he banishes anyone taller than him from the palace. The humorous details in the illustrations (the titles of book covers and the street name for the palace for instance) are a delight. The scenes with the multitude of babies will make children giggle.

[Abigail Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book looks super weird (and it kinda is), but it’s also funny and actually quite heartwarming! Tiny Cedric is a tiny king who can’t bear being tiny. He gets upset one day and bans anyone taller than him, which leaves only the babies!! He ends up having to take care of them and learns to be ok with his size as they grow. Super cute! My 8&9 year old boys enjoyed it too!

[skcocnaH · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 We’re there some things that were a bit off about this book? Sure. Like, at one point King Cedric was having a Stockholm Syndrome moment with the babies. My 5 year old was like, “why would their mommies leave them there?” But, I have to say, the story is soooo cute, combined with the squishy babies, that I’m willing to overlook all the other stuff.

[Patricia N. McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful read-aloud featuring a tiny tyrant who eats his words (with milk and cookies and the babies, of course) until he learns how to accept himself, and others, as is. Quirky artwork adds to the charm of this unusual morality tale, especially the small, witty details that will appeal to adult readers. The stories in The Daily Me are a hoot!

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiny Cedric is the smallest king around and he hates it. He hates being smaller than everyone else the most, and so he banishes all those taller than him from his palace. When he does so, he's left with only babies around him. What will he do? They cry for food. They need changing. They need help with everything! What will Cedric do?

[Villain E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once upon a time, there was a very tiny king. He was so tiny that he was insecure about it and chased away everyone who was bigger than him in the castle, leaving only the babies. But then, instead of having servants taking care of him, he now has to take care of the babies. Which teaches him humility.

Feels like it's two different books. Maybe it just needs better pacing. Decent art.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tiny Cedric is King ME the First. And he is tired of always being the smallest. His solution to this dilemma backfires. The humorous tale is enhanced with silly illustrations. A "be careful what you wish for" moral to the story is obvious, but cloaked in lots of laughs.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

King Cedric is small and gets frustrated that others are taller. Readers see this escalate until he bans anyone taller than him from the castle. The only ones left are the babies and they need a lot of attention. Humor and life lessons wrapped together.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A playful picture book about a tiny king who insists on being the tallest person in his kingdom. So who is smaller than the king? Only the babies! A humorous story that will pair well with Yertle the Turtle by Dr. Seuss.

[Holly Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

So very funny! Kids will love it. Especially kinders and first graders. It made me laugh out loud. My only hesitation is when the King calls back the Mommies. I wish he had just called back the parents.

[Valerie Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This clever and funny book will have kids laughing and reading it again and again. The change in the main character provides a great opportunity for family or classroom discussion but is not heavy handed. Fun, important, and well done!

[Syntha Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

In which a king learns the error of his ways

[A. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think some people will find this funny. I didn't.

[Janie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clever, with a unique problem and a creative solution. Fun

[Abbigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this picture book. Lots of tiny detailed illustrations, but still good for storytime I think.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

All of the humor is tucked into tiny details in the artwork. Okay enough.