Meet the Neighbors! Five Busy Beavers by Stella Grosso

Building a beaver dam calls for all hands on deck.

But when one beaver sneaks away with a muskrat to play, his hard-working brothers, the remaining four, now have to do more!

But as the remaining four brothers "beaver on," chewing down trees to construct their lodge and dam, a lazy heron shows up to persuade one more of the brothers to run away to play!

That loss leaves the three all bereft, each one feeling sorry for himself. And soon some frolicsome frogs lead one more beaver in the bog to abandon his log. More playmates turn up, to lead the remaining brothers to be done for the day. as three frolicsome frogs and and a tempting turtle lead two more away to play!

Only one beaver is left to do the job of building their dam made of logs.

Depressed, the last beaver brother finally paddles off by the dim light of a firefly. The dam's not done, and he is alone.

But as he swims to shore in a lonely, sad slog, he sees something new going up in the bog!

It seems the muskrat, the heron, the turtle and a trio of frogs, by the light of the firefly, have pitched in to finish the lodge with elan!>

"Many hands make light work," says the old saw, and in the bog that proverb comes true, as the five busy beavers celebrate with water lily pie and new friends with whom to watch the winter go by, in Stella Grasso's rhyming adaptation of the story of The Ant and the Grasshopper, Five Busy Beavers (Scholastic/Skyhorse, 2018). Grosso also adds her "Author's Notes, with more about the beavers' new neighbors who share the area around their dam.

With a bit of nature lore, counting lessons, and jolly verse in a novel rhyme scheme in store, Grosso's jolly picture book, illustrated with elan by illustrator Christine Battuz, is a fine seasonal read-aloud for preschool and primary kids.

Opines School Library Journal, "This original take on a classic is recommended as a general purchase for a primary collection. Great for a number-themed storytime or a lap read!"