Sockflea: A Stuffie in the Wild
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Apr 21, 2026
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- $12.99
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- Pre-Order
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Rollicking and irreverent, this any-time ode to independence—and parental innovation—doubles as the vacation read-aloud of the year. Don’t leave home without it (spare socks optional)! This little elephant is going camping for the first time, and does not need to bring ANY STUFFIES. You don’t need stuffies in the wild, OK? Not when you’re FIVE! Not even when it’s dark (very dark) and the sky is endless black, and there are crunchy scrunchy noises all around. Why didn’t the grown-up insist on packing stuffies? Enter Sockflea, who may look like a rolled-up ball of grown-up socks, but NO. Sockflea has been sent by the stuffies back home to look after their friend on vacation. Bold, quirky character art by a New York Times-bestselling illustrator meets high action, slapstick humor, and genuine heart in a witty interactive romp. Brimming with personality, this playful picture book will charm young children test-driving their confidence while managing big emotions—and tickle their grown-ups to boot.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this high-energy picture book with a strong interpersonal dynamic, Dockrill (I Am Strong Just Being Me) and Byrne (This Skirt Won't Work!) deliver an antic take on that eternal childhood tug-of-war between leaning into maturity and still needing comfort. Its young elephant protagonist, going on a first camping trip, insists they're far too adult to take along a stuffie, despite a gentle nudge by their "stressy grown-up" to consider bedtime's needs. Sure enough, when night falls "so dark. Like, so dark" after a perfect day, everything feels wrong—the bright moon, the slippery sleeping bag, the hard ground, and the unfamiliar sounds. "WHY DIDN'T YOU MAKE ME BRING MY STUFFIES?" the little one wails. Thinking fast, the harried-looking caretaker manufactures a floppy-eared comfort creature from two polkadotted socks, dubs it Sockflea, and creates a backstory that it was sent by the home stuffies to offer care. Happily falling asleep, the little elephant makes Sockflea their companion for the trip's remainder. Emphatic text amusingly reveals adult and child perspectives, while digital cartooning feels as loose and bouncy as the elephant's personality, with wobbly lines and watercolor-style washes that capture both daytime delights and the midnight meltdown. Ages 3–7.
