Yay, Us! Pete the Cat Rocking Field Day by Kimberly and James Dean

The sun is BRIGHT and the grass is GREEN. It's a great day for ... FIELD DAY!

LAST YEAR, PETE'S TEAM CAME IN THIRD PLACE.

HE WANTS TO WIN FIRST PLACE THIS YEAR!

Pete wears his red tee, his red headband, and of course, his good-luck red shoes.

The teams line up for the first competition, the baton pass relay race. On the other team are Alligator, Marty the monkey, Squirrel and Turtle.

OH, NO! Squirrel is faster than anyone and hands the baton to Turtle, who crosses the finish line first! Pete knows that they have to try harder, and in the water balloon toss, Pete and Callie win for their team.

The teams are tied, and Pete knows that he still has a chance to earn a medal. But can Pete and his team win the next three events?

Pete's team is fired up! They win the rope pull, and Pete aces the obstacle course. Pete knows he'll get a medal if he can just win the egg-carry race.

Will Pete's hand stay steady...

Or will his nerves (and the egg) crack? OOPS!

It's a tie for the two teams, and Pete has to accept his medallion with a bit of (metaphorical) egg on his face, in Kimberly and James Dean's Pete the Cat: Rocking Field Day (I Can Read Level 1) (Harper I-Can-Read Books.

Everyone is the winner when youngsters become eager readers, and as Pete always says, "It's all good!" And everybody's a winner when the class has a great day outside and when kids can read about the games all by themselves in this winning I-Can-Read easy reader book.

Wind Song! Biscuit Flies A Kite by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

It's MARCH! The Earth has come a long way since the fall solstice signaled the advent of cold days, but now the days are creeping close to the spring equinox with longer--and warmer--days. Spring cometh soon, but first--March winds do blow! What should kids do?

Right! GO FLY A KITE! And Biscuit and his fellow pet Puddles are taking their girls outside to give it a try. They have bright-colored kites with long, long strings wrapped around a stick to hold them by, that is, if they can get their kites UP.

But first the pets have to try to play with the sticks and run away with them. Biscuit and Puddles get the kite strings all tangled up.

The girls are patient with their pets, and when the strings are untangled, it is time to try to get their kites to catch the wind.

READY?

HERE COMES THE WIND!

But the two kites are stuck on the launching pad. (Well, actually--stuck on a bush!) Time to try again. Hopefully, the girls jump to toss their kites high to catch the wind.

WOOF!

BOW WOW!

But their strings snap in a gust of wind and only the fast moves of Puddles and Biscuit save the day--with historic leaps to catch the trailing strings!

PUDDLES CAN JUMP HIGH!

But the girls give it one more try... And the third time is the charm for the two girls and their pets. They have LIFT OFF, in Alyssa Satin Cupucilli's salute to March winds in her Biscuit Flies a Kite (My First I Can Read), (HarperCollins) with the help of her artistic partner, Pat Schories, in this breezy seasonal My First I-Can-Read book for young dog and book lovers. It's time for the two plucky girls and their pets to lean back on a park bench and admire their kites flying high in the spring breeze. As always, Biscuit is there for memorable childhood occasions for young beginning readers.

When Is A Hog Not A Hog? Hog Dog by Audrey Bea

Through the mist of the morning a nattily-attired little girl, in blue hairbow and red dress, spies something ahead, partially obscured in the fog.

What could it be?

IT MAY BE A HOG.

Does its head look like a hog's? It does, sort of. Does its tail look like a hog's? What about those ears? Are they the ears of a hog... or a dog? Maybe.

I THINK IT'S A HOG DOG!

Author Audrey Bea makes good use of all twenty-nine words in this beginning reader book, as her charming little character collects the clues, in Hog Dog (Reading Stars)(Xist Publishing, 2021).

The focus is on what the author considers "sight words." Words like "a" and "I" certainly can be sounded out by anyone who knows the English alphabet, whereas their curious spellings make "through" and "tongue" are clearly sight words, easy to use as reading cues from the illustrations. The bright artwork by Franko Sviatoslav contrasts with the small clouds of fog make in appealing pages for young readers to puzzle over.

For another quickie reader for rookies in the Reading Stars series, see Audrey Bea's My Ball (Reading Stars).

The Adventures of Zip, Bip, & Chip: See Zip Zap! by David Milgrim

Zip is a space alien of the greenish persuasion, with a magical antenna which he uses to zap assorted characters when it seems a good idea--and perhaps when it's not. He first zaps up a striped bug-like critter with two antennae.

Pleased with himself, Zip then zaps up four birdlike creatures. Perhaps to show off his versatility, he zaps up Chip, a canine-ish character whose job is to applaud Zip, and then a similarly egg-headed baby alien named Bip, who seems to be moved mostly to outrun the margins prepared for his persona. Zip follows toward page right to zap up four odd birds who are so exciting that they instantly put Bip the Baby down for a nap!

Bip naps on, despite the flippant and feisty fowls, provoking Bip to wake up and Zip to use his biggest ZAP on the Big Bodied Beastie with one nose horn that he zapped up.

UH, OH. TIME TO GO!

Zap snatches up Bip as the horned Beastie closes in, and the two fall off the cliff as the Beastie skids to a zippy stop.

WHOA!

As Zip and Bip fall toward the ground below, Zip zaps up a squadron of feisty fowls in a flying formation to catch the falling figures of Zip and Bip before they go SPLAT on the flatland below the cliff.

Zip claps and claps!

[THE END]

Author-illustrator David Milgrim's extra-easy beginning reader, See Zip Zap: Ready-to-Read Ready-to-Go! (The Adventures of Zip) concentrates on the beginning reader's venerated reading tricks--rhyming words, repetition, alliteration, and easy-to-sound out words to tickle the punny funnybone and build the beginner's self confidence in this super easy reader in his Adventures of Zip series.

For more reading starters, zip down to the library or bookstore for more Zip and Bip, in Milgrim's sequels, Poof! A Bot! Ready-to-Read Ready-to-Go! (The Adventures of Zip) and Come In, Zip!: Ready-to-Read Ready-to-Go! (The Adventures of Zip).

With A Little Help from My Friends! Pete the Kitty, Ready, Set, Go Cart! by Kimberly and James Dean

PETE WANTS A GO-KART--THE FASTEST ONE!

Pete tries to line up parts for his go-kart. He finds a box, but when he sits down in it, he can't see over the sides. His friend Bob helps him find a seat that fits in the box. Now he sits just high enough.

"GREAT!" SAYS PETE.

But his kart is missing something important!"

"YOU NEED WHEELS!" SAYS CALLIE.

Callie finds an old wagon and she and Bob helps Pete put its wheels on his kart. Now it rolls, but not very fast!

Callie and Pete find a really high hill and Bob helps them push the go-kart up to the top. Is it ready for a test run?

No! First, Pete has to paint some cool racing designs on his go-kart.

Now it LOOKS fast, but he needs one more bit of help--A BIG PUSH from all his friends!

And down the hill Pete goes, (FAST!) in Kimberly and James Dean's Pete the Kitty: Ready, Set, Go-Cart! (Harper My First I Can Read) (Harper).

It seems that it takes a village, or at least some really good friends, to build a winning go-kart racer in this first beginner reader by that winning pair, James and Kimberly Dean, who get Pete going and over the finish line.

For young readers, this one has the right stuff- an idea, a plan, and lots of cooperation--to get their winning project over that goal.

ROY G. BIV GOES MISSING! Pete the Kitty and the Unicorn's Missing Colors by Kimberly and James Dean

At the park Pete spots his buddy, Stevie the unicorn, looking sad.

"THE MAGIC UNICORN DANCE IS TONIGHT," SAYS STEVIE.

"I LOST THE COLORS IN MY TAIL PLAYING IN THE PARK."

"I'LL NEVER FIND MY COLORS BEFORE THE DANCE CONTEST!"

Pete wants to help restore Stevie's rainbow tail colors with his Magic Brush, but he needs to know what colors to look for.

"RED, ORANGE, YELLOW, GREEN, BLUE, INDIGO, VIOLET" SAYS STEVIE.

That's easy-peasy for Pete the Kitty. With his Magic Paint Brush, he gathers red from berries, orange from flowers, yellow from a butterfly, green from grass, indigo blue from the lake, and violet from the clouds, and zaps them into each plume of Stevie's tail.

With his rainbow tail restored to its spectacular spectrum, Stevie and Pete are ready to party down at the dance contest.

The scientifically esteemed ROY G. BIV rides again as the mnemonic device for remembering the colors of the rainbow, as Stevie the Unicorn wins the dance contest, and Pete the Kitty is proud to help his friend make a hit at the dance, in Kimberly and James Dean's rainbow rescue first reader, Pete the Kitty and the Unicorn's Missing Colors (My First I Can Read) (Harper I-Can-Read Books). This one by the prolific couple of Kim and James Dean is a great beginning reader for fans of little Pete and a rhythmic review of the colors for the preschool and primary crowd.

Find more Pete the Kitty early readers here:

Turnip Cake, Anyone? A Birthday for Cow by Jan Thomas

Pig and Mouse have volunteered to make the birthday cake!

"THE BEST EVER!"

Pig and Mouse assemble their utensils: measuring cups, a big bowl, whisks and spoons, and a big baking pan. Pig and Mouse assemble their ingredients: eggs, milk, flour and sugar. But Duck has one more.

"AND A TURNIP?"

Mouse nixes the turnip. Now they have to mix the ingredients with ...

A TURNIP?

NO. A SPOON! Mouse says.

The bakers are ready to put the pan of cake batter into the oven.

"CAN A TURNIP GO IN, TOO?" DUCK INQUIRES.

Yikes, No way, Duck! But when the fragrant cake is done, they have to put something on top of it.

"NO TURNIPS, DUCK!"

Mouse suggests birthday candles! And just in time, the birthday cake is ready. And here comes Cow, right on cue!

"IS THAT WHAT I THINK IT IS?" SAYS COW.

And, Yes, dear reader, COW means ....

The turnip, just for him!

It's different strokes for different critters, in Jan Thomas' early readers' hilarious noodle tale, A Birthday for Cow! (The Giggle Gang)(The Giggle Gang) (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt), in which Cow gets his heart's delight, and Mouse and Pig get to eat their own cake all by themselves. Everyone gets what they want. It's a simple story of the best birthday party EVER! With its thick blackline drawings and multicolored pastel pages, this clever noodle tale offers plenty of visual clues and repetition of key words to help beginning readers tackle reading this story all by themselves.

And now... is there leftover cake for successful readers?

Pair this classic with Jan Thomas' other delightfully silly beginner reader books, such as What Is Chasing Duck? (The Giggle Gang) and What Will Fat Cat Sit On? (The Giggle Gang)

WOOF! MEOW MEOW! Biscuit Wants to Play by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Biscuit and his girl are visiting a friend. Biscuit has to explore everything he sees wherever he goes, and when he peers inside a basket, there is a surprise inside.

WHAT'S IN THAT BASKET?

It's Daisy the cat. And not just Daisy!

"MEOW, MEOW!"

It's Daisy's two kittens and they want to play with Biscuit. Biscuit finds a stick, but the kittens don't want to play with a stick. They want to chase the dry leaves tumbling all over the grass. With a pounce the kitties catch leaves, so Biscuit catches one, too.

But now the kittens are chasing a butterfly just above their heads Wait! Now what are those kittens doing? Climbing a tree? Up they go!

THE KITTENS ARE STUCK IN THE TREE!

Biscuit can't climb trees, but he can jump and bark!

His girl and her friend come to get the kittens down. But the kittens still want to play. Biscuit lets them chase his tail, but that doesn't keep them busy for long.

THERE THEY GO AGAIN!

Playing kitten-sitter can keep a puppy busy, as Biscuit learns in Alyssa Capucilli's account of Biscuit's first encounter with kittens, Biscuit Wants to Play (My First I Can Read) (Harper). Biscuit's adventures make great first encounters with easy readers for young pet lovers just meeting the world of reading.

The Take-0ff! See Otto by David Milgrim

SEE OTTO GO!

Otto is the cutest litte robot you ever saw. He's brave, too, as he waves goodbye to Mom and Pop Robot and enters his spaceship heading for an earth landing.

Right on the plan, Otto steers his little rocket expertly past rocky asteroids, small planets, orbiting satellites, and assorted space junk, until he spots a likely looking planet which looks a lot like Earth. So far its A-OK!

But Otto hasn't had much training in what to do next, and he finds himself out of gas and ... falling, falling, falling, into a crash landing (BOINK!) on his head in some jungle, to the surprise of the bemused monkey population--not to mention a rather hostile hippopotamus who finds him dazed and confused, a stranger in a strange land!

Otto knows what to do when confronted by strange life forms. He gives them his biggest smile. But the natives are not friendly. The hippopotamus is faster than he looks, and he also knows what to do with that horn on his nose.

RUN, OTTO, RUN!

But Otto is not fast enough, and the hippo sends him flying, not into space, but into a tree with two surprised monkeys.

LAUGH, EVERYONE!

It's back to the old drawing board for Otto, or, in this case, back to the old typewriter for author David Milgrim, in his Ready-to-Read book, See Otto (READY-TO-READ PRE-LEVEL 1) (Simon Spotlight Ready to Read).

As the main character in a winner of the American Library Association's Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, this beginner book, with its charming little astronaut has all the right stuff--limited vocabulary, repetition, and funny, irresistible characters for the t novice reader. Keep smiling, Otto. You've got what it takes for lift-off for rookie readers! And there are many more Otto titles waiting for early readers!

Downtown! Biscuit Visits the City by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Biscuit has mastered the backyard, but there are still new worlds to conquer!

"HERE WE ARE, BISCUIT, IN THE BIG CITY. . . TO VISIT OUR FRIEND, JACK!"

Biscuit is amazed by the busy big city--cars and buses and tall buildings and all sorts of people, some walking all kinds of dogs--and PIGEONS everywhere, pecking at the sidewalks, and flying up to ledges on the tall buildings and looking down at him. Biscuit wants to say hello to everyone. And there, ahead of him, is a big fountain, with some of the pigeons taking a bath in the sprinkles.

Biscuit pulls hard and his girl drops the leash, which trails behind him as he dashes toward the fountain and makes the pigeons fly up in a whirr of wings.

"OH, NO, BISCUIT! COME BACK!"

But the excited puppy stops suddenly when a quick-thinking hot dog vendor distracts him with a delicious-smelling hot dog. It's their friend, Jack, and Biscuit stops just long enough for the girl to grab his leash.

"SILLY PUPPY!"

All's well that ends with Biscuit chowing down on the hot dog, leaving most of the bun behind for the pigeons to share, in Alyssa Satin Capucilli's Biscuit Visits the Big City (My First I Can Read) (Harper I-Can-Read Books). Author Capuchilli introduces the city to both Biscuit and the young beginning readers who get to share a bit of urban life with him. Artist Pat Schories' adorable illustrations of Biscuit and his young mistress are as endearing and appealing as usual, and do an excellent job of extending the text with visual cues to Capucilli's controlled vocabulary for early readers.

A Friend In Deed! The Sleepover and Other Stories by Sergio Ruzzier

Fox and Chick are friends. Fox is accommodating to his young friend's ideas, but Chick comes up with some unusual requests. For example, one day Chick goes over to visit Fox and has a strange suggestion.

"FOX, YOU SHOULD THROW ME A SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY TODAY."

Fox logically points out he can't have a surprise party for Chick if Chick already knows about it. So Chick promises to forget all about the party. Fox agrees and tells Chick to come back in the afternoon. Chick asks why he should return then.

"SEE? I ALREADY FORGOT!" HE SAYS.

But Chick doesn't forget that to remind Fox that he wants a party with a chocolate cake with round pink sprinkles and no party hats.

Fox goes along with the plan--so well that when Chick arrives for his party, Fox keeps a straight face.

"WHAT SURPRISE BIRTHDAY PARTY, CHICK?"

"I'M SO SAD! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU FORGOT!" SAD CHICK SNIFFLES.

"SURPRISE! SHOUTS FOX.

The party guests appear at the door with Fox, who proudly holds up a big chocolate care with pink sprinkles! Chick is pleased: he observes that it's exactly what he would want, if it were his birthday, which it's not!

"WELL, THAT IS A SURPRISE," SAYS THE UNFLAPPABLE FOX.

And in Sergio Ruzzier's second beginning reader book in this series, Fox and Chick: The Sleepover: and Other Stories, done in the dry deadpan humor style of the beloved Arnold Lobel's award-winning Frog and Toad are Friends series, there are two more droll tales about these two unlikely friends--"The Sleepover" and "The Hammer," in which the patient Fox plays adult straight man to the hapless noodle juvenile character played by Chick, set in comic frames with speech balloons that entice early readers.

Says Booklist, "In pleasing and often amusing illustrations, Ruzzier motivate[s] beginning readers with the dual reward of verbal and visual humor. Original storytelling with quirky, character-driven humor.

Pair this one with Ruzzier's earlier Fox & Chick: The Quiet Boat Ride: and Other Stories, see my review here.

Join The March! Biscuit and the Big Parade by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

"IT'S TIME FOR THE BIG PARADE! COME ON, BISCUIT!"

The big bass drum leads the snare drummers and the twirling girls down the street. Flags are waving and the spectators are cheering!

WOOF! WOOF!

But Biscuit pulls on his leash. He doesn't want to sit and watch. He wants to be part of the parade. When the firefighters trucks rumble by, Biscuit has to make friends with the firefighters big dog!

RUFF! WOOF! WOOF!

"BISCUIT! YOU CAN'T MARCH IN THE PARADE!"

But just then the clowns come by, led by a fat clown holding a bunch of helium balloons by their strings. The rest of the clowns blow their hand horns. Oooga! OOOOGA!

The big clown is so distracted that he loses his grip on the balloon's strings! Up they all go!

THERE GO THE BALLOONS!

But of couse Biscuit saves the day, jumping as high as he can to catch all the balloons just in time, in Alyssa Satin Capucilli's Biscuit and the Big Parade! (My First I Can Read) (Harper I-Can-Read Books).

It's the season for watching and leading parades--and just the right fun for a puppy hero as he rescues the balloons and marches right along with the drummer in front of the band!

RUM-PA-PA-PUM! WOOF! WOOF!

Whether its a Halloween parade, a Veteran's Day parade, a Championship Game band or the Thanksgiving parade, they are all fun, and it's an especially good time to read a book starring in this popular beginning reader book with a puppy like Biscuit!

Don't Fade Away! Ghoulia and the Ghost with No Name by Barbara Cantini

It was a lovely snowy evening at Crumbling Manor. Ghoulia was a little weary from her snowball battles with her village friends, but inside the candle-lit mansion all thoughts were turning toward the up-coming "Dead-But-Not-Departed" New Year's Eve party.

But up in her tower, Ghoulia was feeling a little spooked. She had the creepy feeling that someone was watching her.

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She heard noises on the roof. Just a split second before he vanished, Ghoulia spotted a boy sitting on a patch of snow. He was glowing, too!

And in the morning there are mysterious, ashy tracks around Uncle Misfortunes fireplace. And in the early evening, there was a tap on the window that almost made her drop the book she was reading. And when Ghoulia and her dog Tragedy peered out, they saw a faded ghost boy floating outside!

"Let me in!" he commanded. "I don't have anywhere else to go!"

"What's your name?" asked Ghoulia.

"I can't remember!" moaned the little ghost.

Ghoulia knew that was a perilous state to be in for a ghost. Without a name and with no one to remember him, he was beginning to fade away. Unless he could find his name to remember, he would finally disappear. Kind Ghoulia knew she had to help. She decided to consult the most knowledgeable ghost she knew--Grandfather Coffin, who explained about Oblivion--the place where ghosts go when no one, not even themselves, still remembers their names.

Now Ghoulia knew what she had to do, but... HOW? Ghoulia visited the Crumbling Manor's extensive library. She made a photo of the little ghost, and used it to identify the little ghost's clothing as in the style of about 1810. Then Ghoulia asked for help from Auntie Departed, who told her that the local church kept records of all births, weddings, and deaths, but warned her that she dared not enter the church. Dreadful, unknown things might happen, she suggested. Ghoulia, with her fingers well crossed, promised that she would not.

But the gutsy Ghoulia was not one to let an old auntie's tales get in her way when someone needed her help, in Barbara Cantini's Ghoulia and the Ghost with No Name (Book 3) (Amulet Books, 2020), and with the help of the official Church Registry there was a newly re-discovered name, Nicholas, added to the guest list for the Dead-But-Not-Departed party at Crumbling Manor.

Beginning chapter book readers will find this third book in the Ghoulia series a spine-tingly spoof, a tongue-in-cheek ghost and ghoul story, illustrated in, er, lively color cartooning by the author. The author also appends more spooky fun, "Nicholas's Memory Games." For the first book in this early readers' series, see my review here.

Stage Fright! Clark the Shark and the School Sing by Bruce Hale

Clark the Shark, the kid with the killer smile, is happy when his teacher makes an announcement.

"CLASS, NEXT WEEK IS THE SCHOOL SING!"

Clark is psyched! He begins to belt out the first line of their song, "When You're Happy and You Know It," He loves that song! Most of the class already know it, and they are soon belting it out with bravado, too!

"IF YOU'RE HAPPY AND YOU KNOW IT, CLAP YOUR HANDS...."

The teacher is pleased, but then she says...

"GOOD JOB. NOW WE LEARN THE DANCE!"

"DANCE???"

And the usually confident Clark the Shark discovers that he can't sing and dance at the same time. He turns in the wrong direction and everyone else gets mixed up. Clark is killing the rehearsals and he knows it!

"WHAT IF I MESS UP?"

Their teacher tells the class just to relax and enjoy the experience. The rest of the class seems fine with that advice. But when that curtain opens on the big night....

THEY FROZE!

Can Clark the Shark come through in the clinch?

You bet your dorsal fin he can! The show must go on, in this debut of Bruce Hale's Clark the Shark's (Level 1) Comic Books for beginning readers, Clark the Shark and the School Sing (I Can Read Comics Level 1). Illustrated by Hale's comic partner, Guy Francis, this new series is sure to be a hit with the early reader set. Kids can count on Clark the Shark to save the day in comic fashion. This one is a sure-fire winner for reading aloud before that curtain opens on a real-life class program.

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"OH, HI, FRIEND! IT'S YOUR FRIEND, BIG! I HAVE A PROBLEM.

BUNNY WILL NOT JUMP!"

Big has committed an unintended faux pas.

Big Blue Bear challenged his friend Bunny into a jumping contest, and Bunny lost. Now Bunny has lost his self confidence.

"THAT'S RIGHT! I WILL NOT DO IT."

Big can tell his friend is sad about the whole thing. He knows Bunny loves to jump. It's what bunnies DO! But he will not jump, even for a trophy full of lettuce! This is SERIOUS.

So Big Blue Bear asks the readers to pitch in.

IF YOU SHAKE THE BOOK, MAYBE HE'LL JUMP.

SHAKE!

Bunny does not jump. Big Bear brings in the old JUMP-0-MATIC.

"PUSH THE BLUE BUTTON, FRIEND!"

PFFFFFOOOOF! The Jump-o-Matic malfunctions! Big Blue Bear tries to explain that he can jump higher than Bunny only because he is much taller. His argument falls flat. Finally, Big Blue Bear turns to his readers for help:

FLIP THE PAGE BACK AND FORTH TO HELP BUNNY JUMP!

And the old Flip-the-Page trick really works, as Bunny jumps really high, in Jason Tharp's Bunny Will Not Jump! (Ready-to-Reads) (Simon Spotlight, 2020).

In this comic easy reader in Jason Tharp's contribution to the beginning reader series Ready-to-Read,, author-illustrator Tharp encourages young reader with an interactive book that gets everyone into the act. Other books in this easy-to-read series are Bunny Will Not Be Quiet! (Ready-to-Reads), Bunny Will Not Smile!: Ready-to-Read Level 1 (Ready-to-Reads), and Kiwi Cannot Reach! (Ready-to-Reads).

A Boy's Best Friend Forever! Lenny and Wilbur by Ken Wilson-Max

LENNY AND WILBUR ARE THE BEST OF FRIENDS.

Wilbur sits when Lenny tells him to. He lets Lenny give him a warm bath with plenty of suds and a goatee of bubbles!

And when Wilbur's all clean and rinsed, he shakes and gives Lenny a bath!

The two eat lunch together. Lenny doesn't share from Wilbur's bowl, though.

They sing "Old MacDonald" together. Wilbur gets to do the "WOOF WOOFs" here and the "WOOFS WOOFs" there!

And when they are all tired out...

BEST FRIENDS REST TOGETHER!

Ken Wilson-Max's latest addition to his charming series, Lenny and Wilbur (Kane Miller, 2020) has owner Lenny and pet Wilbur just hangin' out and enjoying doing ordinary things together. Wilbur is the sort of big, companionable dog who makes people want to shake his paw and say, "You're a good dog, Wilbur!" Lenny is a good owner, too, giving his dog a nice warm bath and singing songs with Wilbur's cooperation, including soloing on the WOOF-WOOF passage, and young readers will find this one an easy one to breeze through. Share this one with Ken Wilson-Max's search-and-rescue romp, Where's Lenny?

Smile, Darn Ya! Bunny Will Not Smile by Jason Tharp

"HEY THERE! MY NAME IS BIG"

"I HAVE A PROBLEM OVER HERE ON THE NEXT PAGE...

"BUNNY WILL NOT SMILE!"

Big Blue Bear is always trying to get Bunny to do stuff. And Bunny likes to say, "NOPE!"

Bear tries bribing Bunny with bunches and bunches of carrots. Bunny is apparently bored with bunches of carrots. So Big tries dressing up like a clown and making silly balloon people. Bunny is not amused. Bear tries boisterous busking with a rock band. Bupkis!

Bear has to bring in the experts. He challenges his readers to do something super silly.

"OKAY. GET IN REAL CLOSE SO BUNNY CANNOT HEAR!"

"I NEED YOU TO MAKE A SUPER SILLY FACE."

And Bear's readers are more than on board with that idea, and Bunny bursts into a big wide grin, in Jason Tharp's Ready to Read book, Bunny Will Not Smile!: Ready-to-Read Level 1 (Ready-to-Reads) (Simon Spotlight). Author-illustrator Tharp's interactive easy readers are certain to bring at least a smile to the kids who can read this one out loud when they see Big Blue Bear's selfie of himself and Bunny, both with big smiles. Check out Tharp's other Bear and Bunny book, Bunny Will Not Be Quiet! (Ready-to-Reads) and his latest, It's Okay to Be a Unicorn! and his silly skunk in It's Okay to Smell Good!

Not Feelin' Groovy! Pete the Kitty Goes to the Doctor by Kimberly and James Dean

PETE THE KITTY WAKES UP. IT'S TIME TO GO TO SCHOOL.

HE STRETCHES. OUCH!

Pete's dad comes in to see why he's not up.

"MY BELLY DOES NOT FEEL GROOVY," PETE SAYS.

Dad tells Pete to rest, and Pete soon feels a little better, so he gets out of bed to play with his trains. He's expecting a groovy day playing at home. But in a while Pete's dad comes back and tells him he has an appointment with the doctor. Now Pete has a tummyache and he's a little scared, too!

Dad tries to make him feel better.

"THE DOCTOR IS COOL. SHE IS NOT SCARY," DAD TELLS HIM ON THE WAY.

The doctor's waiting room has lots of cool, far-out toys to keep Pete busy. Soon the nurse comes to take him to the doctor's examination room, where she checks his temperature and looks in his ears and eyes with cool tools. She feels his tummy and then listens to his heart with a stethoscope and lets him listen to hers.

THE DOCTOR GAVE PETE A COOL STICKER!

It's all new and interesting to Pete, and he's glad when the doctor tells him he only needs to rest at home until he feels well, and sure enough, he soon does.

Dad knows best, in Kimberly and James Dean's Pete the Kitty Goes to the Doctor (My First I Can Read, a beginner reader than takes Pete to the doctor for an actual illness. A chance trip to the doctor for Pete serves as a vicarious experience to prepare real children for more than the routine "well-child examination," one in which they actually feel unwell and may fear what will happen in the medical office.

Missing Person Mission: Duck Duck Moose by Mary Sullivan

It's a serene morning on the farm until as frantic girl races up with a disturbing query--

WHERE IS GOOSE?

Oh, dear! Moose takes charge! The tractor is still attached to its trailer, perfect for a missing person search...

GET BIG MOE!

Big Moe is cranked with amid some clunks and pows as Duck and Duck and Moose climb into the trailer and the girl takes the wheel, all with one mission, to find Goose immediately. Bucolic bystanders, Horse and Sheep, point the way they saw Goose go. But soon there's an obstacle--the gate is locked and the key is hanging on the tree, way up there. Leaps and flapping attempts to reach it fail, so Moose tries a totem pole arrangement, with the two ducks on top of each other on top of his head. The top duck stretches high into the tree and ...

BUZZ, BUZZ, BUZZ!

A swarm of hornets bring them all crashing down in the mud.

THONK! WHACK! STING! STANG! STUNG!

Mission aborted. After soaking in a bubbly bath, the three call it a day, and plastered with bandaids, Goose, Goose, and Moose repair to bed, still sad and without the mysteriously missing Goose.

The Caldecott-winning author-illustrator Mary Sullivan's latest, Duck, Duck, Moose (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021) is a beginning reader full of merry mayhem with onomatopoeic words and obvious affection for the muddled characters' missing friend (who, in the conclusion, shows up with beach bag, surfboard, and a mystified expression at her reception). With controlled vocabulary, visual cues, and plenty of repeated words and phrases, this slapstick story is filled with action and humor, perfect for early readers.

Sullivan's literary output is filled with delightfully humorous picture books that charm young listeners as readalongs, readalouds, or beginning readers: Ball, Treat, Up On Bob, Frankie, and Nobody's Duck. (See reviews here).

Strange Friends! Smell My Foot (Chick and Brain) by Cece Bell

"HELLO, BRAIN," SAID CHICK.

"YEAH, I KNOW!" SAID BRAIN.

"NO, BRAIN. I SAY, 'HELLO, BRAIN!' YOU SAY 'HELLO, CHICK!'"

LIKE THIS," SAID CHICK, FLYING UP ON BRAIN'S NOSE AND REPEATING, "HELLO, CHICK!"

"MY NAME IS NOT 'CHICK!'"

"BRAIN, YOU LOOK SMART. BUT YOU ARE NOT VERY SMART!" SAID CHICK.

"OH, NO?" SAID BRAIN. "SMELL MY FOOT!"

"I WILL NOT! COME ON, BRAIN. NO!" SAID CHICK.

By the end of this dialogue, young readers will know that they are in for a classic noodle tale in Cece Bell's Chick and Brain: Smell My Foot! (Candlewick, 2019). Whether Brain's foot smells good or not, Chick refuses to smell it until Brain says PLEASE. Chick demonstrates:

"SMELL MY FOOT, PLEASE!"

Brain gets down on all fours and smells Chick's foot!

Things continue in the same vein as Chick and Brain meet a dog named Spot, who agrees that Chick's foot smells good--because it smells like chicken, and he loves chicken! Flattered, Chick accepts Spot's invitation to come for lunch, neglecting to find out whether he will be a diner or the dinner. After much coaching, Spot says please and thank you as he ushers Chick to sit down in a bowl and sprinkles him with salt and pepper. But before Chick becomes chicken dinner, Brain arrives to rescue him. He asks Chick if he knows what food dogs eat. Chick guesses dog food.

"AND CHICKEN!" ADDS BRAIN!

Maybe Brain is pretty smart after all, in this beginning chapter book sure to gain giggles from early grade readers just trying their skills in longer books. Author-illustrator Cece Bell, already a Newbery Honor Medal winner, also earned the 2019 American Library Association Theodor Seuss Honor Medal for this clever first in series book for young readers. Set in comic book paneled page format, with four chapters and with plenty of silly interchanges between the two characters, kids will get lots of laughs (and perhaps a few etiquette hints) in this first title. Says Kirkus, "In this first series entry, Bell flips the repetitive primer structure on its head and transforms it into a winning oddball comedy."

Cece Bell's next book in this series is Chick and Brain: Egg or Eyeball?