"Though fictional, Carlson's book acts as practical what-to-expect guide for losing your lunch. A straight-talking young lass gets us off to a ralphing good start: a two-page spread of spewing animals, from bugs to platypuses. Everyone, you see, engages in the ol' Technicolor yawn. For a dog, explains the girl, hurling is no biggie, 'but barfing is scary to a kid!' She recounts how an 'icky flu bug' (from a school lunch, natch) makes her queasy and how she tries to resist horking, but, ultimately, upchuck will not be denied. 'When you barf at school,' she adds, 'be prepared, because everyone will go nuts!' Yes, schooltime cookie tossings are traumatic - no one likes to see the janitor and his 'special barf cleanup machine' - but Carlson's message is that it's normal, temporary, and you'll even be welcomed back.... [T]his is a great normalizing device for all those reluctant regurgitators out there." (Booklist)
 

"There's nothing dignified or pleasant about vomiting, whether you're the one doing it or simply in the area when it's going on. For kids, the experience can be particularly upsetting, especially if one gets sick at school. Carlson (Zip It!) clearly knows all of this well, and she writes with empathy, reassurance, and a 'them's the breaks, kid' brand of humor as she follows a girl's bout with the flu. 'When that flu bug finally picks you...at first you really try not to barf...' she writes, as a giant green germ excitedly watches the girl's face go deep green. 'But it's no use. You will barf. With any luck you will barf on your math test.'.... But sickness is fleeting, Carlson explains, and her matter-of-fact writing...that everything from aardvarks to leprechauns throw up, too, are a kind of medicine in themselves." (Publishers Weekly)

"Nancy Carlson brings up the embarrassing topic of throwing up in public and explains why it is okay. Everybody does it, even dogs and guinea pigs. The main character and her dog are narrating the story about how barfing at school is not fun, but hopefully you can get sick on your math test. You get to go home to bed while the custodian has to clean the mess up with his 'special barf cleanup machine'. I like this book because it will help educators discuss an embarrassing topic with children.... This book will have children giggling until the last page. Recommended." (Library Media Connection)