TOP THIS! Crock and Turtle: The Bestest Friends Ever! by Mike Wohnoutka

Croc and Turtle are best friends. But that doesn't mean that Croc is above showing off his prowess around little Turtle.

"HEY, TURTLE. DO YOU WANT TO SEE ME LIFT THIS HEAVY ROCK?

"UMM... SURE, CROC.

The rock is heavier than it looks. But with a grunt, Croc manages to get it a little way off the ground.

"PRETTY GOOD, CROC!" ADMITS TURTLE.

"I'M CROC, AND I'M THE STRONGEST!" CROCK BRAGS.

Elephant strolls up and asks what they're up to, and of course he hoists the rock and even tosses it high into the air. But Croc doesn't want to lose face in front of his friend Turtle, so he asks Turtle if he'd like to see him leap over the rock.

"WHOA!" SAYS TURTLE.

Turtle is duly impressed until Rabbit comes by and asks for a try. He hops high over the rock and declares it easy-peasy. Croc tries to redeem his reputation by running fast, but little Cheetah breezes right by him.

"I'M NOT THE BEST AT ANYTHING," CROC SNIFFS.

But Turtle has the best comeback ever.

"CROC, YOU ARE THE BEST FRIEND!"

It's a big world out there and there's always someone who is better at something, except for being your best friend's best friend, in Mike Wohnoutka's just published Croc And Turtle! The Bestest Friends Ever! (Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2020). In a sweet story of Best Friends Forever, Wohnoutka's perky, googly-eyed characters, done in black line and light gouache, take a light-hearted look at competition which proves again that there are different strokes for different folks. It's all relative, but best friends just can't be beat, in the latest sequel to author-illustrator Mike Whonoutka's earlier Croc 'n' Turtle tale, Croc And Turtle: Snow Fun!