We Don’t Eat Our Classmates

It’s the first day of school for Penelope Rex, and she can’t wait to meet her classmates. But it’s hard to make human friends when they’re so darn delicious! That is, until Penelope gets a taste of her own medicine and finds she may not be at the top of the food chain after all.

Award-winning author-illustrator Ryan T. Higgins delivers a hilariously clever story that tackles first-day jitters with prehistoric charm. This delightful picture book follows a young T-Rex navigating the tricky waters of school life, where making friends proves harder than expected when your natural instinct is to eat them. Through laugh-out-loud moments and surprisingly sweet lessons, young readers discover that empathy often comes from experiencing life from someone else’s perspective.

Perfect for children facing their own back-to-school anxieties, this tale wraps important messages about friendship, self-control, and treating others kindly in a package that’s pure entertainment. Higgins’ vibrant illustrations bring Penelope’s world to life with expressive characters and visual humor that rewards multiple readings. The story’s gentle approach to behavior and consequences makes it an excellent choice for classroom read-alouds and bedtime stories alike.

Whether your little one is a dinosaur enthusiast, loves humorous stories, or simply needs a confidence boost before the school bell rings, We Don’t Eat Our Classmates serves up the perfect blend of giggles and heart. It’s a book that children will want to devour again and again—though perhaps that’s not the best word choice in this case.

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