The PICTURE BOOKS THAT ALMOST RHYMED

When the Rhyme Doctors work with clients, we urge them 1) to polish meter to flow consistently and smoothly and 2) to use true (exact) rhymes. Recently, two picture books have hit the market that ignore the second part of this advice. They rhyme properly in some places but not in other spots. This was hardly done in error -- the authors did so on purpose, and to wonderful effect!

DOZENS OF DOUGHNUTS​, by Carrie Finison, illustrated by Brianne Farley (G.P, Putnam's Sons, 2020), has been mentioned in the House Calls blog before. Eileen Meyer's post focused on the clever use of refrains to add humor and build tension. (Find the post here: https://www.rhymedoctors.com/house_calls/rhyme-terms-refrain-part-2) An important part of Carrie Finison's refrain is the use of predictive text; readers anticipate a rhyming word after the page turn.
Most of the book's text is in true rhyme. The book's main character, LouAnn, is busy making doughnuts to fill her belly before winter hibernation. But, as she pulls each batch from the oven and sits down to eat, the refrain introduces a snag in her plans:

One dozen doughnuts, hot from the pan.
Toasty, and tasty, and ALL for--
                                            DING-DONG!

The doorbell interrupts, urging the reader to turn the page. Readers, expecting the rhyme 'LouAnn', are surprised and amused to find 'Woodrow' on the other side of the door. The non-rhyme keeps the reader guessing, adding to the humor and tension in the story.
Here is another example:

THE BOOK THAT ALMOST RHYMED, by Omar Abed, illustrated by Hatem Aly (Dial Books for Young Readers, 2024) is the obvious inspiration for this post's title. The two main characters in the story are a brother and sister. The brother has set out to write the PERFECT rhyming story:

The other day, I wrote this book.
You won't believe how long it took.
It rhymed, and I was super proud.
It sounded great when read aloud.

But then my sister came along,
and now the story sounds all wro--
                                           [page turn]
                                                          BETTER! 

Omar Abed uses the same page-turn technique as Carrie Finison. He leads readers to expect a rhyming word, sometimes by hinting at the word with a partial spelling. The sister jumps in after the page turn, and her suggestions (the non-rhyming words) change the story. Different colors in the font indicate the different character's dialogue. The non-rhymes add humor and unpredictability to the story.

Very cleverly, in the end, the brother discovers that nearly all of his sister's substituted words are rhyming pairs. The siblings then team up to complete the hero's journey in the story, with a wonderful twist after the final page turn.

I've never tried purposefully not to rhyme, but these books are so much fun that I'm tempted to give it a go! Maybe you'll be tempted, too.

​~ Patricia Toht