Litte zizi, sur Children's Bookwatch, Publishers Weekly et Kirkus Reviews

Children's Bookwatch :

Little Zizi is a unique children's picturebook that dares to address a part of growing up that virtually no other children's literature will touch. "Zizi" is a euphemism for "penis" in this simple and charming tale about an ordinary boy, named Martin. Martin wonders whether one day his little zizi will become the size of his dad's zizi; it's normal for young boys to wonder that. But then a locker room bully named Adrian makes fun of Martin's little zizi in front of all the other boys. To make matters worse, both Martin and Adrian are sweet on Anais, the prettiest girl in school. Adrian challenges Martin to the contest--whoever can pee the farthest wins! When Martin can't perform in the contest despite his practice, Adrian is victorious; yet the next day, Anais repudiates Adrian's affections. She prefers the kindly Martin, "Because love isn't a question of a zizi--large or small." Enthusiastically recommended, especially for mothers and fathers to share with their sons when teaching them about the facts of life. -

Kirkus Reviews :
Poking its way across the border more than ten years  :after its first exposure in Canada, this wry twist on the Penile Code provides direct reassurance to worried readers (of the male persuasion, at least) that Size Doesn't Matter. Catching sight of nerdy Martin standing naked in a swimming-pool dressing room, swaggering Adrian sneeringly dubs him "Little Zizi"; when Adrian goes on to announce that the lads will all decide who's to be pretty Anais's boyfriend with a peeing contest, Martin determines to fight back-but despite hard practice, come the contest he can't perform.
No matter: Anais proceeds to hook up with Martin for a smooch. After a while, everything in Poulin's finely-modeled illustrations, from a string of sausages to a peaked cowboy hat, begins to look like a phallic symbol. Perspective renders the anatomy in question only barely visible; more obvious is the contrast between Adrian's piggy countenance and Martin's hunched shoulders and opaque eyeglasses.
Not a comfortable topic, at least in this country, but the frankness and humor with which author and illustrator address it will draw a (wait for it) swelling audience. (Picture book. 6-9)


Publishers Weekly :
Playground politics meets penis anxiety in this unlikely comedy. “Like all boys, Martin had a zizi, and this zizi didn't cause him any problems,” writes the French author. But the school bully singles out Martin's zizi: “With such a little zizi, you can't make babies!” Later he adds insult to injury by asserting, “With your little zizi, you can't pee very far at all!” Can Martin vanquish the bully, reassert his manhood and win the beautiful, popular Anais?
Poulin, a Canadian illustrator, chronicles Martin's torment and triumph with cinematic perspectives and a Brueghel-esque feel for character and place; his burnished paintings convey both the gritty reality of school life and the fretful ruminations of the endearingly geeky hero. Wry but always empathic, Lenain brings a novelistic depth to a story that could easily have been little more than an adult's cheap joke—especially given that the pivotal event is a peeing contest.
Whether or not little boys care so much about the size and procreative powers of their zizis is debatable, but for sheer storytelling talent, there's no doubt: Lenain and Poulin are definitely well endowed. Ages 6–up.