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Everything's Better with a Beard    by Si Robertson & et al Amazon.com order for
Everything's Better with a Beard
by Si Robertson
Order:  USA  Can
Simon & Schuster, 2014 (2014)
Hardcover, e-Book
* *   Reviewed by Bob Walch

The Robertson Clan has already made plenty of money with their reality show, Duck Dynasty, and their business venture called Duck Commander. You'd think the Louisiana family would be satisfied with what they have accomplished but now they are launching a series of books.

This picture book, which lists some of the benefits of having long, scraggly beards, carries a dedication to the men's wives who have 'loved us without beards and with beards'.

A humorous defense of the male beard ('They’re comfy and cozy like a winter coat'), the rhymed text is supposedly the reply to a nameless boy who asks, 'It may not be my place, but why don't you shave those big beards off your face?'

The imagery of hirsute males not only includes the Robertsons but also other folks, from Moses and Santa to Lincoln. Along with these iconic bearded fellows is the tag line, 'Behind every beard you'll find a great guy'.

Eventually the book takes an even sillier turn. At this point altered photos of dogs, a truck, a kitten, the Sphinx, an infant, and an apple (all sporting beards) fill the pages. Young children may find this funny but older readers will probably not.

I guess enough males sport beards now so that the publishers thought this would be a clever book. That remains to be seen. My bet is that besides giving this as a gag gift to grown ups, most young readers will be fairly ambivalent about this title.

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