Beware! Cat Traps by Molly Coxe

For a big orange cat, there is nothing sadder than an empty bowl.

CAT WANTS A SNACK.

He snickers as he locates the perfect device--a spring-release mouse trap! But the trap does not catch a mouse.

CAT CATCHES A BUG!

YUCK!

Down near the chicken coop, Cat tries another idea, a wire cage with the door propped open. The chickens cluck all around it and then stroll off, free, but Cat's trap catches a pig.

TOO BIG!

Cat really wants a snack. By the pond, he tries to catch a fish in a net. The fish is so big that it tows him around the bend in the net

Next, the poor hungry cat strikes out with deadfall trap for a bullfrog and gets an angry dog instead. Then he nets a duck. You know what? Angry ducks are mean!

BAD LUCK!

Then he spots a girl with a sack of promising tidbits and follows her home. He still wants a snack....

And what's in her sack? Could it be... Oh, JOY!

CAT CHOW!

Molly Coxe's Cat Traps (Step-Into-Reading, Step 1) proves that persistence pays in this bright early read for preschoolers and primary grade students who still need picture cues to help with word recognition. Coxe's illustrations of his hapless hunter will tickle youngsters' giggle boxes and persuade them to keep reading to see what happens next. Other books in this series on this level by author-illustrator Molly Coxe include Big Egg (Step-Into-Reading, Step 1) and Hot Dog (Step-Into-Reading, Step 1).

Grapefruit, Anyone? Every Night Is Pizza Night by Kenji Lopez-Alt

"TONIGHT IS PIZZA NIGHT. SO WAS LAST NIGHT. WE'RE MAKING PIZZA TOMORROW, TOO," THIS SCIENTIST SAYS.

"BECAUSE I'VE DONE THE TESTS! IT'S THE PIZZAGOREAN THEOREM!"

Pipo is a picky eater. She only eats pizza! Mr. Gonzalez at the grocery agrees pizza is tops. Pipo's papa pays him for the pizza ingredients and moans...

"I LONG FOR GRAPEFRUIT!"

Mom suggests other famous, fabulous foods:

Chicken pot pie? Chicken NOT pie.

Peking Duck? Peking--Yuck!

But finally Pipo agrees to do a neighborhood favorites taste test. She tries a bite of Eugene's mom's babimbap, fried egg on top and all!

Wow! It's plenty spicy and crispy, and pretty sensational. But better?

"I NEED MORE DATA!"

Pipo checks out Dakota's mama's red beans and rice. Uggh, they look like mud with beetles in it. But... Holy Pepparoni! Yumsome!

Then there's Farah's family's tagine. Who'd think apricots and chicken could be so good together! Dumplings from Ronny and Donny's food truck are like little purses of deliciousness. But better? Pipo has her emergency pizza slice in her pocket and does a comparison tast test! Hmmmm! It's close, but pizza is is still tops.

Pipo consults the food expert, Mr. Gonzales, who makes a Solomonic judgment:

"PIZZA IS THE BEST, BUT IT'S NOT THE ONLY BEST!"

Any way you slice it and dice it, there's a difference in favorite food for every time, place, and taste, in Kenji Lopez-Alt's hilarious battle of the tastebuds, Every Night Is Pizza Night (Norton, 2020). Author Kenji Lopez-Alt's lively language creates a intrepid and inimitable young taster who knows what she likes, but admits, as Pete the Cat would say, "It's all good." It's all in good fun, too, in Lopez-Alt's testy taster's scientific study of foodstuffs, illustrated zestfully in artist Gianna Rogierro's busy pages, full of fun. And for holdouts in the favorite food department, the author has her protagonist provide a simple recipe for a family pizza, in which Pipo prefers a topping of oregano and Parmesan cheese, Mom comes down for Hawaiian, and Dad perhaps wonders how grapefruit would go as a topping!

"Bold, bright colors, dynamic illustrations, repetitive refrains, and catchy, well-paced text make this book utterly rereadable." Kirkus raves.

A Taste for Literature: Library Books Are Not for Eating by Todd Tarpley

THE DAY MS. BRONTE CAME TO SCHOOL, STORY TIME WAS EXTRA COOL.

But she had this unfortunate habit....

COULDN'T BEAT IT....

ONCE SHE READ A BOOK, SHE'D EAT IT.

The class was aghast. They loved their books. They felt they had to repeat that library books are not to eat!

Librarian McSmartly envisioned her book stock shrinking. What was Ms. Bronte thinking? Ms. McSmartly had to preserve her collection! MS. Bronte vowed to end her greedy prediliction. But on her way out, she gobbled a booktruck full of fiction.

Ms. Bronte promised to change her diet. The Lunch Lady dished her up stew and cottage cheese. But that didn't seem to please Ms. Bronte, who scarfed up all the kitchen's recipes.

Maybe big Coach Burley can could her straight--and alter the choice of what she ate. But the coach was more concerned that his soccer field needed mowing, which seemed to set Ms. Bronte's juices flowing! But after she ate Burley's book of soccer plays, she vowed to change her ways.

IT'S NOT THAT I FIND BOOKS SO YUMMY! BUT NOTHING ELSE HERE FILLS MY TUMMY!

Coach Burley offered Ms. Bronte a deal.... Make his overgrown playing field her daily meal!

Author Todd Tarpley's latest school story, Library Books Are Not for Eating! (Doubleday, 2020), fits right on the menu with last year's hit gustatory yarn, We Don't Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins. (See my review here). Author Todd Tarpley is the past master of wordplay, rhymes, and comic plots, and Tom Booth's, er, tasteful illustrations make this one a humorous introduction for that first classroom lecture on library book care. Other hit books by Todd Tarpley are Beep! Beep! Go to Sleep! Naughty Ninja Takes a Bath, Three Grumpy Trucks, and his classic, Ten Tiny Toes.

Food Fight! Pizza and Taco: Who's the Best? by Stephen Shaskan

Taco spots his top pal, Pizza, (with whom he shares a lot of toppings). Taco overshoots their high five and takes a tumble!

"I'm okay!" says Taco. "I'm just glad to see you! You're my best friend We are... BEST BESTIES!"

They do their Besties routine:

BIG JUMP!

FIST BUMP!

BUTT BUMP!

They agree they are better buddies than Hamburger and Hot Dog. But then Pizza gets a bit hot under his pepperoni, pointing out that only ONE of them can be THE best! They toss slogans at each other.

"MELTY CHEESE! SLICE OF LIFE!" shouts Pizza.

"TASTY BEEF" SPICY!" Taco yells back.

Pizza shouts that HE is the best. He demands a vote! But Pizza tries to cheat on the ballot count, and Taco takes over. The vote is a tie! Pizza demands a trial by Waterslide at the Water Park. Pizza wins the belly-whopper heat, and Taco takes the backsie heat. But if they are both the best--

"What is the true...: says Pizza "...meaning of the best?..." asks Taco.

BEST FRIENDS! they shout together. BIG JUMP! FIST BUMP! BUTT BUMP! font-size: large;"YAY!

Stephen Shaskan's Pizza and Taco: Who's the Best? (Random House, 2020) is the latest entry in the growing graphic novel genre for middle readers, this one starring fast food friends Taco and Pizza and their foodie frienemies Hamburger and Hot Dog, as the menu rivals work out their pecking order. Edible characters like those in the best-selling Peanut Butter and Jelly (A Narwhal and Jelly Book 3) have been popular and Pizza and Taco are jolly comic cartoon characters in this likable new series. “YAAAS! This lunch bunch serves pure silliness,” says Kirkus Reviews.

And for more of the YUM CHUMS, Shaskan has a sequel. Pizza and Taco: Best Party Ever!

Lunch Break! Brownie and Pearl Grab a Bite by Cynthia Rylant

TIME FOR LUNCH!

Brownie and Pearl are ready to take a break from their jigsaw puzzle and raid the fridge for the midday meal. What looks good?

Pearl puts her paw on the package of string cheese.

"MMM--CHEESE!" SAYS BROWNIE.

Pearl takes a nibble and then rolls over to play with her stick of cheese.

Brownie finishes her cheese and spots a basket of apples on the kitchen table. Brownie picks out a couple of apples and takes a bite of hers.

Pearl pushes the other apple around the floor. Brownie tells her not to play with her food!

NOW FOR SOMETHING SALTY!

"SALTINES, OF COURSE!"

Brownie tries to nibble her crackers into interesting shapes. Pearl holds up one square in the shape of a P for her name.

And finally the two agree that they need something to drink. Brownie gets the carton out of the refrigerator and pours herself a glass and pours Pearl a bowl of milk. YUMMY!

It's a do-it-yourself luncheon for pals Brownie and Pearl the cat, in Cynthia Rylant's easy-reader, Brownie and Pearl Grab a Bite (Beach Lane Books). Brian Biggs provides the gently humorous illustrations that extend the simple text with humorous details.

In addition to this series, Cynthia Rylant is the much-loved and award-winning author of several series of beginner reading books that feature fun with pets, such as her Henry and Mudge Ready-to-Read Value Pack: Henry and Mudge; Henry and Mudge and Annie's Good Move; Henry and Mudge in the Green Time; Henry and Mudge ... and Mudge and the Happy Cat (Henry & Mudge), Annie and Snowball Collector's Set!: Annie and Snowball and the Dress-up Birthday; Annie and Snowball and the Prettiest House; Annie and Snowball and ... Nest; Annie and Snowball and the Shining Star and her Mr. Putter and Tabby I, 12 Volumes (Bilingual Version of English And Chinese) and all favorites of preschool and primary readers.

Too Much of a Good Thing? Pete the Cat and the Perfect Pizza Party by Kimberly and James Dean

Pete the Cat loves pizza.

Pete the Cat loves parties.

Pete had a idea--he would have a Pizza Party!

Pete knows that the PERFECT pizza is a pizza with pepperoni and extra cheese. What could be better? What could be simpler?

It's an EASY-PEASY PIZZA PARTY!

Pete's friends all arrive, ready to build their own pizza.
There's just one problem....

No one else wants pepperoni with extra cheese.

Callie calls for pretzels on her pizza.

"Well, that's something new," Pete muses. "But maybe pretzels could be groovy, too!"

But Squirrel wants pistachios on his pizza. Grumpy Toad opts for pickle pizza. Gus the Duck prefers popcorn on his pizza, and Alligator picks papayas for his topping. Pete picks up his guitar and plays a riff:

"It's a pizza, a pepperoni, pretzel, pickle and pistachio, popcorn and papaya pizza!"

OUT OF SIGHT!
DYNAMITE!
JUST RIGHT!"

It's different strokes for different folks, and when better to try something new than New Year's Eve, in Kimberly and James Dean's latest Pete The Cat picture book, Pete the Cat and the Perfect Pizza Party (Harper, 2019). It seems that if it's hot enough and has cheese on top, it's a pizza, and Pete the Chef makes a diverse pizza for every one of his friends. Kimberly Dean writes the rhymes and artist James Dean draws the daring diners and tasty toppings, even tempting his adventurous eaters with endpapers picturing yet more er, groovy combinations for exotic toppings. just in case they feel like, Oh, I don't know... an avocado and artichoke pizza? Bon Appetit!

You Can Feed a Poodle a Noodle, But... Never Feed a Yeti Spaghetti! by Kali Stileman

No fajitas for cheetahs. Well, maybe a few--no more than two!

But no shrimps for chimps. And a whale will always fail to eat his kale. Don't even think about it!

And even his mama won't give a little llama a banana!

But how can a kid resist when every page features a big-mouthed critter (with soft felt teeth that never nip little fingers), non-verbally saying ...

"DO YOU DARE FEED ME??"

Kali Stileman's latest board book, Never Feed a Yeti Spaghetti (Make Believe Ideas, 2018), features charming rhyming advice that entice older tots (and adults) to try their own rhyming duos--(Never feed a horse borscht? Never bake a snake a cake?) and lets younger toddlers have some fun with every page fitted with a big mouth for force-feeding each critter. With some incidental learning opportunities in the way of animal and food naming, this die-cut toy-and-movable book can be a lot of fun for parent and child. Oh, and don't feed a fox your bagel with lox!

Cold Case! Mission Defrostable (Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast) by Josh Funk

Down in the gloomiest nook of the fridge,
past Veggie Valley and Rosemary Ridge,
meeting in secret behind Pickle Post,
sat Lady Pancake beside Sir FrenchToast.

Something sinister is afoot in the fridge.

There is a mysterious chill in the atmosphere. Lady Pancake's carefully-curled coiffure looks as if she's had it frosted. Sir French Toast's wig is icy. Is the compressor out of control? The thermometer miscalibrated?

The coolest sleuths in the kitchen are called to take the case!

Agent Asparagus flashed an I.D.

You're the two heroes that I've come to see!

Before their home turns into the new Ice Age, Sir French Toast and Lady Pancake have a mission--to stop the glaciation before it turns all the fresh food in the fridge into popsicles. There's only one place to look for the cold-blooded crook--in the FREEZER! But before they can venture into that icy realm, there is one more carb character they need to recruit--the cold and calculating frozen Baron von Waffle.

Pancake explained what they needed to do.

"You know the freezer. We're lost without you!"

Will crusty old Baron von Waffle join in their mission to save the green veggies in the crisper from becoming frozen forever? Will the real sub-zero perpetrator be unmasked as the daring pair stalk the cold-hearted villain in the upper realms of refrigeration?

Or will this episode turn out to be the foodie version of Frozen?

In a plot that might have been penned by author Agatha Frostie herself, there's a warm ending in store for the two starchy sleuths in a delicious denouement in which the Peach Boys come out of retirement for a spot of surfing the shelves in a gatefold that reveals a COOL (but not too cool) celebration of calibrated refrigeration. It's the latest spoof of the mystery detective genre by the always chill Josh Funk. In his third in series, Mission Defrostable (Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast) (Sterling Books, 2018), Funk's artist sidekick (and partner in crime) Brendan Kearney provides the animated and anthropomorphized foodstuffs in his usual lively pastel illustrations.

Serve this one up with a warm cup of cocoa, along with more of the refrigerator investigator genre in Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast and The Case of the Stinky Stench (Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast) (see review here).

Picky Picky! How To Feed Your Parents! by Ryan Miller

Matilda Macaroni wanted to try quiche. Her parents did NOT. The list of things Mr. and Mrs. Macaroni would eat was very short.

CHICKEN (only in nugget form)

BURGERS (only in a bag with ketchup, fries, and a toy)

PIZZA (only with pepperoni, delivered at the door.)

Their daily diet is dull, drab, humdrum...

BORING!

Even when Grandma brings over goulash and gumbo and jambalaya, Matilda's parents turn up their noses and run for the fridge to rustle up some leftover takeouts.

Matilda tried new foods whenever she could--sushi at a sleepover, paprikash at a playdate....

But her parents remain implacable, preferring bowls of sticky sweet cereal that make the milk purple. Matilda Macaroni realizes that if she is going to get anything approaching varied fare, she is going to have to turn the tables on her picky parents and prepare their meals herself. With Grandma at her side, she takes on cookery, covering all the basics. She peruses recipes. Tasty and nutritious vittles become her specialty.

She perfected paella and conquered croquettes.

At last ready to confront her parents with her gourmet cuisine, Matilda stealthily empties the fridge of every vestige of fast food, and promises there will not be a quiche in sight.

"Just burgers!"

Her parents are put off by the presence of mushrooms and weird green things called arugula inside the bun, but they agree to try a bite.

And they find Matilda's novelle cuisine burger is better than any McBurger in a bag, in Ryan Miller's brand-new How to Feed Your Parents (Sterling Books, 2018). Youngsters who are a bit leery of new foods will laugh at stodgy parents who are the picky eaters. Illustrator Hatem Aly's skillful comic illustrations turn the finicky diner tale upside down as the kid gets to be the expert on nutrition and meal prep, a switcheroo which will tickle funnybones and perhaps tempt stuck-in-a-rut eaters to try new foods, too. All is cool with the culinary arts in the Macaroni's kitchen, and now... if Matilda can only get her mom and dad to tidy up their room....

For another tale of tricking fussy eaters, pair this one with Dan Marvin's But I Don't Eat Ants (POW Books, 2017) (see review here.)

Meals On Wheels: Food Truck Fest! by Alexandra Penfold

A family of  four is in a flurry and a scurry of a hurry.  It's very early, but they are packing up the baby (where's his other shoe?) and the supplies for an all-day outing.  Everything they'll need--except a picnic. And there's a reason for that!

Time to hustle. There's prep to do.
Bring in the groceries. Here comes the crew.

Let's get moving.No time to rest.
Everybody's going to the Food Truck Fest!

At every big outdoor event, there are special things to do and view for all kinds of people of all ages. Stuff to see, stuff for sale, music to hear, games to play. And circling whatever the event has to offer, there are the trucks with  a world of foods to proffer.

But this time all the crowd needs to do is bring their appetite. This time the food trucks are up-front and center. This is a Food Truck Festival!

Bright trucks of all sizes and hue, each one with its specialty, made just for you!

The cooks dice and slice, frying and baking. What are all these food trucks making?

One of them has got just what you're craving.

Falafel? Belgian waffle?

Kimchee tacos? No illusion!
A tasty Korean-Mexican fusion!

From hot dogs to frozen yogurt, it's a cacophony of cuisines in Alexandra Penfold's appetizing Food Truck Fest! (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2018), written in the author's snappy rhymes and rhythms, and illustrated temptingly by artist Mike Dutton, whose comic gouache illustrations feature a fantastic mix of people and appetite-whetting food trucks with the wonders of world-wide foods. There's something for everyone from the food truck folks in what Publishers Weekly says is "right on the mark for this down-to-earth, artisanal cuisine and its scrappy, hardworking purveyors."

And for an non-alcoholic aperitif, pair this one with Mark Todd's awesome Food Trucks! (Savor my tasty 2014 review here)

Sweets for the Sweet! Bagel in Love by Natasha Wing

BAGEL LOVED TO DANCE.

IT MADE HIM HAPPIER THAN BIRTHDAY CAKE.

In spring a young man's fancy may turn to thoughts of love, but Bagel just wants to dance--and that requires a partner. Poppy Seed Roll is the peppiest bread in the basket, but she turns him down flatter than a fritter. Pretzel crisply declines the honor, rating Bagel's footwork as downright cheesy. Donut's eyes appear to grow glazed at the idea of dancing with Bagel. Matzo turns him down flat. Croissant just rolls her eyes.

"ARE YOU TRYING TO BUTTER US UP?" SHE ASKS.

But Bagel roundly ignores all their denials and heads off to Sweet City to try his luck in the dance contest.

He auditions with a tap dance in the style of famed film star Fred Eclair, but the French roll pronounces his routine stale.

But then Bagel catches a glimpse of the sweetest pastry product of all. Cupcake accepts his invitation to the dance, and they give their steps a twirl around the dance floor. It's a match made in Bakery Heaven, in Natasha Wing's latest wordplay-filled winner, Bagel in Love (Sterling Books, 2018).

Veteran author Natasha Wing, the author of the ever-popular The Night Before.... series, liberally adds a dash of freshly half-baked word wit into the recipe for this pun-filled fun read, illustrated heartily in yummy pastels with plenty of sprinkles that may leave young readers smiling but strangely craving carbs.

Other satisfying rhyming stories by Natasha Wing include The Night Before St. Patrick's Day and The Night Before Easter.

SPLOINK! Peanut Butter and Jelly Aliens--A Zombie Culinary Tale by Joe McGee

QUIRKVILLE WAS A QUIET LITTLE TOWN, THE KIND OF PLACE WHERE THE PEOPLE AND ZOMBIES LIVED IN PEACE.

It wasn't always so. When the Zombies first invaded Quirkville, they shambled through the heretofore quiet streets, arms stretched before them--in search of (YIKES!) brains. But one young zombie--Reginald--was a more adventurous eater, one who actually craved exotic food, namely Abigail Zink's peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and soon all the zombie invaders turn into PB and J fanciers. Now at lunchtime the busy streets of Quirkville are filled with various people and zombies, all happily in search of that classic sandwich.

But now there are new invaders in Quirkville, a small squadron of space aliens equipped with blasters, and all are clearly looking for lunch in all the wrong places!

But what?

"PIZZA?" SAID REGINALD, OFFERING THE ALIEN A TASTE OF HIS SLICE.

HIS ANTENNAE QUIVERED AND HIS TENTACLES SHOOK. HE DIDN'T LOOK HAPPY!

BRAZZAT! SPLAT!

Firing their blasters, the aliens storm through the town. At the Downtown Grill Greta hastens to flip grilled cheese sandwiches for them, but the aliens fire back with cosmic grape jelly. Icky-sticky!

SPLOINK! SPLOINK! they demand! What can they want!

It's Abigail and Reginald to the rescue, as they figure out that the aliens are there to find the missing ingredients they need to go with their cosmic grape jelly, in Joe McGee's latest, Peanut Butter & Jelly Aliens: A Zombie Culinary Tale (Abrams Books, 2017). Humans and zombies UNITE in serving up the necessities for Quirkville's signature sandwich at the newly christened SPLOINK CAFE, and again all is well in Quirkville.

It's a silly story, as befits one with kids, zombies, aliens, and sticky sandwiches, in this sequel to McGee's 2015 hit, Peanut Butter & Brains: A Zombie Culinary Tale (review here). As in the first book, author McGee gets a major culinary and artistic assist from illustrator Charles Santoso, whose comic drawings offer more fun with food for the primary reader. Kids who favor fantasy stories about aliens and zombies may want to get their sticky PB and J fingers on this one.

Revenge of the Nerd! Seven Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break If You Want to Survive The Cafeteria by John Grandits

Kyle's on the school bus, nose in his trusty insect book, while his seatmate Ginny natters on and on about the virtues and vices of the celery sticks in her sack lunch. Trying to be sociable, Kyle volunteers something that makes Ginny's eyes bug out.

"Mom didn't have time this morning, so I'm buying my lunch in the cafeteria."

Ginny gasped.

"How hard can it be?" I said.

That question is Kyle's first mistake. Ginny leans in dramatically.

"There are RULES!"

#1: DON'T HOLD UP THE LINE.
#2: DON'T TAKE TOO MANY THINGS.
#3: DON'T FORGET TO PAY.
#4: ALWAYS EAT WITH YOUR CLASSMATES.
#5: HOLD ON TO YOUR TRAY.
#6: NEVER AGGRAVATE THE LUNCH LADY.
#7: NEVER, EVER, TALK TO THE BIG KIDS.

Kyle doesn't like rules. They are too easy to break. His bug book under his arm, he scurries nervously down the hall to lunch with the other fifth graders like a line of army ants, the scary sixth graders hot on their heels, looking more like a swarm of yellow jackets, with the worst bus bully, Arthur, right behind him.

But the posted menu is long, and Kyle pauses to squint at each choice. Arthur pokes him in the back:

"Hey, Dweeb! Get moving!"

Yikes! He's already broken the first rule of survival. But Food Service Guy barks at Arthur. Quickly, Kyle stammers out a truthful explanation.

"It's not his fault," I said. "I was taking too long."

In short order, Kyle finds himself breaking every one of Ginny's rules. He piles his tray with all the choices and gets busted by the Lunch Line Lady. He doesn't know his PIN to pay the Register Woman, and when he hustles to get the last empty seat with his class, he trips and fall flat, the contents of his tray splattering everywhere. Every kid in the room turns to look and in that time-honored school custom, they hoot with one voice. All the Cafeteria Ladies have had it with Kyle. The Lunch Monitor glares down at him.

"That's it! You've caused enough trouble for today."

Eyes bulging like a beetle, she points a skinny, hairy appendage toward the sixth grade table, to the only empty seat in the house, right next to Arthur the bully.

He was hunched over his food with five other meat-eating water bugs. What could I do?

"Hey, Dweeb! Thanks for covering for me in the line," Arthur says.

It's The Revenge of the Nerd, in John Grandit's Seven Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break If You Want to Survive the Cafeteria (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017), in which Kyle encounters all of the hazards of the school cafeteria--the bully, the menu, the wrath of the various Lunch Ladies and Guys, the dropped tray, and (horror of horrors) having to sit with the Big Kids. The only nemesis he navigates easily is the food. Sure, the pasta may look like worms, but creepy-crawly critters are Kyle's passion, and while slurping up his spaghetti, he engrosses and grosses out the sixth graders with his true tales of fifty-feet-long tapeworms and headless living cockroaches.

Artist Michael Allen Austin ably portrays his entomology-obsessed hero as the perfect preppy nerdboy in his pressed blue oxford shirt and scholarly glasses, with beloved bug book under his arm. Kyle is the quintessential bully bait, but also one with a secret weapon--he's a nice guy who knows really cool gross stuff. Austin's illustrations fill the full-bleed pages with comic bobble-head caricatures of the usual suspects of the middle-grader school scene, sure to tickle kids and a sure-fire hit for back-to-school reading.

For more first-days of school fun, pair this one with Grandit's and Austin's comedic and congenial companion book, Ten Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break if You Want to Survive the School Bus.

Foodies Unite! Samson, the Piranha Who Went to Dinner by Tadgh Bentley

Samson is a different sort of fish. He doesn't follow the leader and swim with the old school.

While the other piranhas stick to the same old routine, Samson likes to try new things. Even when it comes to their daily grub, the other piranhas form a feeding frenzy without savoring a single bite. But Samson swims to a different drummer.

Most of all, Samson dreams of eating fine food in the finest restaurants--lily linguine and crisp kelp cakes.

So one day Samson decks himself out in a debonair fedora, and with his dispatch case of cutlery jauntily over his shoulder, heads off to one the finest restaurants in town. With a big smile, he even invites some patrons to dine with him. Yikes!

"NO WAY!

A restaurant is no place for a ...

PIRANHA!"

Samson clears the place in a trice when the other fish fear that they are about to be the catch of the day!

Undeterred and disguised in a set of Groucho glasses with bushy brows and mustache, Samson ventures out to the Cafe Pierre, determined to remain incognito. But he can't help smiling at the friendly waiter who comes to his table....

"PIRANHA!"

Still those kelp cakes beckon, so this time Samson tries a curly wig and a big floppy hat and books a reservation under what he hopes is a clandestine name, Samson P. Rana.

But when the obsequious waiter tries to take his hat and coat, Samson's cover is blown, and the fearful fish flee the dining room, leaving their dinners behind.

"PIRANHA!"

It seems Samson can't catch a break, much less a shrimp scampi, until he gets a new idea. Perhaps he and some of his fellow predatory fish foodies can open their own private restaurant. With a chef who knows his way around a toothsome crab souffle and a nicely seasoned Coquille St. Jacques, Samson and his buddies, sharks, barracudas, and the like can at last dine in style. On opening day the food is fabulous, and business is great--suspiciously so.... Samson takes a closer look at the clientele.

Hey,... wait! Isn't that a sea turtle wearing a fake shark fin strapped around his shell and chomping a kelp croquette?

In his Samson: The Piranha Who Went to Dinner (Balzer and Bray, 2017) Tadgh Bentley pokes some fun at foodies and their tendency to flock to the latest hotspot eateries. Bentley's cartoon-style under-the-sea illustrations make the most of spoofing his dining denizens of the sea, The illustrator's disguises for poor Samson will definitely look "fishy" to young readers, while the discovery of Samson's impressive dental equipment underneath will have sharp young readers piping up with "PIRANHA!" at all the right points in this tasty fish tale. As Kirkus Reviews quips, "Young readers will be hooked."

Beset by Regret! Nanette's Baguette by Mo Willems

TODAY IS A DAY NANETTE WON'T SOON FORGET.

NANETTE GETS TO GET THE BAGUETTE!

Nanette, a charmingly bedecked young French frog, has yet to be sent to get her first baguette. Is she ready for the task?

YOU BET!

Nanette is excited to be trusted with the task of buying the day's bread, and she is proud to set forth solo to the bakery.

But her trip is beset with temptation to loiter along the way. There's Mr. Barnette's pooch Antionette to pet, and her friends Georgette, Suzette, and Bret with his clarinet. Will Nanette forget?

"I'VE GOT A BAGUETTE TO GET," SAYS NANETTE TO THE QUARTET.

She arrives at the boulangerie and from Baker Juliette she gets the very best baguette, pays her debt, and is proudly all set for the return trip. Is Nanette's mission accomplie? Not YET!

That baguette is still hot from Juliette's oven, and the aroma of the fresh bread goes straight to Nanette's head.

Soon there is nothing left of it but a few crumbs on Nanette's fingers and face.

Now Nannette frets.

"I ATE THE BAGUETTE!"

NANETTE IS BESET WITH REGRET.

Will Mama ever forget? Will Nanette ever get to get the baguette again?

But back home Mama's understanding embrace is warm and wonderful, in the welcome return of the warm and wonderful Mo Willems, in his latest yet, Nanette's Baguette (Hyperion Books, 2016). Author Willems' wordplay is as wizardly as always, as he makes the most of a selected set of rhyming words, while his wit is as wondrous and his insight as wise as in his other beloved books. Artist Willems sets his story in front of a Frenchified, cardboard-constructed street scene and with charmingly collaged characters (even sneaking in his popular Pigeon) in his own inimitable style, and all ends well with a welcome reset--yet another baguette which Nanette and Mama ate--together.

Let's hope Mo Willems will yet beget more stories of Nanette.

Among Willems' many Caldecott-winning books are Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, and sequels, There Is a Bird On Your Head! (An Elephant and Piggie Book) and companion Elephant and Piggie books, and his masterful treatises on toddlers and parenting, Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale and sequels.

The Nose Knows! Llama Llama Yum Yum Yum! by Anna Dewdney

LLAMA LLAMA
LOVES TO EAT,

SNACKS AND MEALS
AND SPECIAL TREATS.

Eggs and toast and a glass of O.J. start the day.

There's a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to munch for lunch, and juice and crackers are afternoon snackers.

And in between Llama Llama goes with Mama to the grocery store for more. Veggies and cheese are sure to please.

And back home again, supper is a real slurper-upper, with Llama Llama's favorite. Spaghetti is quickly ready, and with spicy herbs and a sprinkle of cheese, it's always time for "More, please!"

And then there's the finale--a dish of ice cream with a cherry on top. For both picky eaters or young foodies, Anna Dewdney's rhyming Little Llama tale, Llama Llama Yum Yum Yum! (Grosset and Dunlap, 2016), has an extra treat along with little Llama's choices to eat. It's a scratch-and-sniff board book, featuring the smells of favorite foods: sweet and fruity (grape jelly in the sandwich) and sour (a sample dill pickle from the deli counter), tangy orange in the juice, and a hint of herb-y oregano in the pasta, with a cherry-vanilla dessert chaser.

Food can be fun, and with Llama Llama, they'll all say YUM. Anna Dewdney's delightful preschool rhymes and charming illustrations are a tasty treat in the little scratch-and-sniff board book just right for a toddler's stocking stuffer.