Common Sense Media Review
By Stephanie Snyder
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Lackluster uncle-nephew buddy tale charmingly illustrated.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
In THE SECRET SOCIETY OF AUNTS & UNCLES, main character Leo's embarrassing moment at dance class is made worse by the arrival of his Uncle Mo. Uncle Mo is clueless about what it means to be an uncle -- he expects Leo to adhere to way too many rules, from not chewing gum in the car to going to bed at 8 pm. Just when Leo is ready to erupt in frustration, he and Uncle Mo get whisked away to a peculiar world where they encounter the Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles. Here, Uncle Mo undergoes a series of tests that teach him what it means to be an uncle. Will the lessons learned in this quirky in-between be enough to salvage the uncle-nephew relationship?
Is It Any Good?
Dan Santat's Illustrations bring life to a story that has potential, but just isn't told very well. Will kids enjoy reading The Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles? Probably. They'll get a kick out of the action packed pictures and may compare their own aunts and uncles to the ones in the book. But given the celebrity names involved with this book, the overall story is sadly disappointing, especially because picture books about the dynamic between aunts/uncles and nieces/nephews are hard to come by.
The book's title is a bit misleading, as there's no real mention of aunts and what makes them special. Perhaps Uncle Mo could've had a sister or partner to balance the representation. There's another missed opportunity here: the story promotes one expectation of aunts and uncles that fits a mold and downplays the impact of aunts and uncles who may just be different. This is revealed when the relationship between the story's stars is repaired only when Uncle Mo becomes who Leo wants him to be. To not show multiple models of the aunt and uncle-kid relationship was just too big of a miss.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about empathy in The Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles. How does Uncle Mo learn to understand Leo? How does Leo learn to appreciate Uncle Mo?
Look at the illustrations. What makes the Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles a fun place? What makes it a strange place?
Do you have aunts or uncles? What are they like? What are your favorite memories of them?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Dan Santat
- Genre : Picture Book
- Topics : Adventures
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Feiwel & Friends
- Publication date : September 5, 2023
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 4 - 6
- Number of pages : 48
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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