It's So Good! Groovy Joe: Ice Cream and Dinosaurs by Eric Litwin and Tom Lichtenheld

GROOVY JOE SAW SOMETHING YUMMY.

GROOVY JOE STARTED RUBBING HIS TUMMY.

It's going good for Groovy Joe.

What Joe sees is a Haagen Dogs ice cream truck. And what he gets is a tub of strawberry ice cream. And a spoon. Life is groovy.

GROOVY JOE IS LIVING THE DREAM.

But just as Joe sits down to enjoy his cool treat, a tiny tricerotops ROARS into the room, pulls out a spoon and ties on a bib. He's having some ice cream, invitation or no invitation.

Does Joe lose his groove? Nope.

"IT'S AWESOME TO SHARE!" HE SINGS.

Joe and the little dino dude dive into to their delicious ice cream, but soon there is another rude interruption.

ROAR! It's an big dinosaur butting in. He brandishes a spoon and puts on a big bib and pulls up a chair to dish himself a prodigious helping. But does Joe blow his top? No! He repeats his melodic mantra.

"IT'S AWESOME TO SHARE!!" HE SINGS.

All's well for the moment as the trio chows down on their frozen treat. But then it happens again!

ROAR!! A huge dinosaur crashes through the door, Without observing any niceties, he ties on a big bib, plunks down into a chair, and producing a huge spoon, digs right into the ice cream carton.

Does Groovy Joe hit the ceiling? Not at all. He repeats his cheery refrain:

"IT'S AWESOME TO SHARE!!!"

But then there's a predictable problem. The carton is empty. The ice cream is gone.

But Groovy Joe chooses to take metaphoric lemons and make lively lemonade. He turns the ice cream carton upside down and turns it into a drum, rat-a-tat-tatting with his spoon, and the three dinosaurs jump into line, dancing to the beat.

Even faced with the worst guests at table ever, author Eric Litwin's other cool character, Pete the Cat, would say "It's all good," in his Groovy Joe: Ice Cream and Dinosaurs (Groovy Joe 1) (Scholastic/Orchard Books, 2016).

What do you get when you combine best-selling author Eric Litwin with best-selling illustrator Tom Lichtenheld (for Rinkey's Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site)? You get the first installment of the jaunty Groovy Joe series, with a message about the virtues of sharing goodies (even with the worst-mannered guests imaginable), and with comic creatures done in Lichtenheld's signature blackline and strong color, creating illustrations that make making the best of a bad situation look like jolly good fun for storytime, with a included link to Joe's cheery chant online. Says Kirkus Reviews, "a catchy tune, dancing dinosaurs, and strawberry ice cream are an enticing combination."