"I have always admired Tom Tomorrow for his keen intelligence and penguin-based wit, but now he has unnerved me with a story of socio-political chaos that is at once completely ridiculous and sadly familiar."--Lemony Snicket "This is a funny book with an important message: we need penguins in government."--Dave Barry The mayor of the "medium-sized city" has some very strange ideas. Among them that firemen should put out fires using peanut butter instead of water and that policeman should chase robbers while wearing clown costumes. Needless to say, these decisions don't work out too well. When Sparky the Penguin wonders why nobody thought to question these silly ideas, he finds out that people were afraid of being laughed at if they disagreed with the mayor. The first-ever children's book from legendary cartoonist Tom Tomorrow, The Very Silly Mayor uses Tom's unique combination of humor and social commentary to teach children to trust their own judgment, even if other people might disagree with their views or make fun of them. One of the most influential comic artists of the past twenty years, Tom Tomorrow's weekly strip, This Modern World, appears regularly in many papers across the United States, as well as on Salon.com. He is the author of numerous cartoon collections, including The Great Big Book of Tomorrow, The Future's So Bright I Can't Bear to Look, and Penguin Soup for the Soul.