It’s raining teeth around here.
Teeny-tiny, itsy-bitsy pearly whites belonging to a child who was absolutely convinced that she would go to her grave with all of her baby teeth intact.
My 8-year-old has turned into a human slot machine, except when you pull her arm she spits out teeth instead of quarters.
Which is not to say that she hasn’t made out like a pachislo addict.
Who needs to hit the jackpot on a real one-arm bandit when you’ve got the Tooth Fairy making sure you win big when you loose little choppers?
My daughter’s teeth have been falling out at such a rapid pace, she has abandoned the traditional money exchange and now places a list of toys she wants the Fairy to bring her in lieu of cash.
Interestingly, you don’t see many books dealing with that dilemma.
The closest I found is The Berenstain Bears and the Tooth Fairy.
When in doubt, turn to the Bear family.
I grew up reading Berenstain Bear books and this latest addition to the expansive collection of children’s classics is as amazing as ever.
In it, Jan and Mike Berenstain tackle the touchy subject of losing teeth in a world ripe with glaring economic disparity.
Traditionally, when a cub loses a tooth in the Bear household, he or she receives a shiny new quarter from a flittering fairy sporting pink stirrup pants and wings. However, when Sister finds out that her BFF Lizzy scores an entire dollar from the Tooth Fairy, she practically swallows her loose fang.
Clearly befuddled by the discrepancy in Tooth Fairy payouts, Sister runs home to Mama and Papa Bear and confronts them about the travesty.
“Lizzy says that when her baby teeth come out, she gets a whole dollar! Why does the Tooth Fairy only bring me a quarter?”
“Well,” said Mama, “some parents add a little extra to the money the Tooth Fairy brings. But we think that’s the Tooth Fairy’s job.”
Not a bad comeback from a mom who had just sat down to sip some tea, though I like Papa’s answer better:
“Sometimes the price of things goes up, like gas. The price of gas for our car went up twenty cents just last week! Maybe the same thing happens with teeth.”
Like Mama, Papa Bear is also sitting at the table when he throws out that explanation; however, I’m not sure his cup is filled with tea. What’s Papa sipping to come up with that zinger?
We may never know.
What I do know is that The Berenstain Bears and the Tooth Fairy is a must-read for kids with wiggly incisors. The book is filled with rich illustrations that are as colorful as they are captivating. What’s more, your little bookworm will be at the edge of her seat wondering whether Sister will see a bonus in her Tooth Fairy payout after losing her front canine during an apple bobbing contest.
I won’t give away the surprise ending.
You can find out what happens by getting your own copy on HarperCollins’ website or picking up The Berenstain Bears and the Tooth Fairy at discount retailers nationwide.
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