Be Quiet and Listen! It's So Quiet! A Not--Quite Going to Bed Book by Sherri Duskey Rinker

 

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, THE SUN DROPS BELOW THE HILL.

THE FARM IS FALLING QUIET. EVERYTHING IS STILL.

When the sun disappears behind the trees around the little farmhouse, it's getting close to bedtime for a little mouse, but Grandpa and his old hound dog already have a headstart on the front porch, Grandpa dozing in his rocker and Hound Dog on his little rug. Inside Mama is trying to move her little Mouse toward bedtime. He has a complaint.

"IT'S TOO QUIET!"

But outside his bedroom the moths' wings slap with a soft SHAH SHAH against the outside light, and the crickets tune up their chirps. As the moon rises, the bullfrogs in the pond warm up their croaks. The barn owl on the chimney hoots a first soft WHOOOOO! The screen door adds to the symphony as the breeze begins to make the screen door squeak and chreak-chreeeaaak back and forth.

Grandpa's doze slips into sleep and he begins to snore loudly in his rocker. The dreaming dog's tail begins to slap the porch floor.

SNORT!

BLOOP! BLOOP! BLOOP!

TIP-TAP TIP-TAP

And then, from far, far away a coyote howls....

A-ROOOO!

Up goes the window. Mouse sticks his head out and yells...

"QUIET! I'M TRYING TO SLEEP!"

And finally Mama's words come back to him.

"HUSH! NOT A PEEP!

THE SWEET SOUNDS OF NIGHT WILL WHISPER YOU TO SLEEP."

And so they do at last, in Sherri Duskey Rinker's latest, It's So Quiet: A Not-Quite-Going-to-Bed Book (Chronicle Books, 2021). As in her first hit, Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site (Hardcover Books for Toddlers, Preschool Books for Kids) and the books that have followed, (see reviews here), wordsmith Rinker knows how to select words that make the text come alive.

Illustrator Tony Facile's soft palette and easy lines and Rinker's ready rhymes, rhythms, onomatopoeia, and alliteration give this soothing, not-quite bedtime story great appeal as a read aloud for one child or a group which will no doubt enjoy chiming in on all the natural night sounds and coming up with some of sounds that darkness brings to their own houses. This newest picture book is a winner for Rinker!

E Pluribus Unum! All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold

The school bell is ringing. It's time to cine together in a classroom. What will it be like? Well, all kids like a lot of the same things.

LET'S ALL TAKE PART.

WE'LL ALL MAKE ART.

Kids are clapping and singing, and then sprawling on the floor to finish coloring their pictures of things they like. And then it's time for recess.

OR IF YOU COME FROM FAR AWAY...

ALL ARE WELCOME HERE.

Kids of different colors and in different clothes are ready to run outside. They like to swing and slide, and hop on the merry-go-round and take a ride!

Back in the classroom it's time to learn about dinosaurs and slime, bugs and volcanos. The world is full of different things to know. And when at lunch, there are a dozen kinds of bread in different people's lunches, anyone can have a taste. There are so many new things to try that school time seems to fly. Tomorrow is another day, another time to say, "All are welcome."

Author Alexandra Penmore's rhyming story of a day at school, All Are Welcome (Alfred E. Knopf) demonstrates her theme that diversity is the best way to deal with adversity, as our motto E Pluribus Unum (Out of Many, One) bravely says, and she shows all kinds of kids who get to school in all kinds of ways, sharing their school days. Artist Suzanne Kaufman fills her busy and colorful illustrations with humor and fun as the kids sing and play, learn and share their day with each other in this New York Times best-selling picture book about school days for all.

Ten Woodland Babies: Over in the Forest by Marianne Berkes

Over in the forest where the clean rivers run,

Lived a busy mother beaver and her little kit one.

And what does a mother beaver teach her baby? She teaches him to BUILD--gathering branches and building a sturdy dam and den for their winter lodge.

But the woodland forest has many mothers and little ones, all learning what to do!

Mother Deer and her two fawns GRAZE on the green grass; Mother Possum teaches her three little joeys to CLIMB into a hollow tree.

Mama Box Turtle teaches her hatchlings four to HIDE, inside their shells on the forest floor, and Mother Turkey takes her five little poults out to scratch where berries thrive, while Mrs. Squirrel, with her kits six do gymnastic TRICKS in the trees.

Mother Woodpecker's seven chicks learn to RAP AND TAP on trees for their supper, and Mama Raccoon shows her eight kits how to DUNK AND DABBLE their dinners.

Mama Skunk teaches her nine kits to stomp and SPRAY!. Pew-ewww! Keep away!

Papa Fox teaches how to POUNCE on prey so his ten kits can dine in their den.

And to the familiar tune of "Over in the Meadow," youngsters can learn to count, to recognize common woodland animals, what their babies are called, and some of their signature behaviors in Marianne Berkes' joyous nature science book, Over in the Forest: Come and Take a Peek (Dawn Publications) in a rhyming song to sing along.  Berkes soft and lovely paper collage woodland animals are pleasure to see and fun to count.

But wait! There's more! Well concealed in each beautiful double-page spread is a hidden mystery animal--a tree frog, black bear, blue jay, salamander, rat snake, coyote, bobcat, red-tailed hawk, owl, and porcupine for sharp-eyed young readers to discover in the foliage. Author-illustrator Berkes has provided a singalong lesson perfect for preschool and primary classroom units on woodland animals which also includes teaching tips and music and art activities in the appendix, as well as backmatter that extends cross-curriculum teaching opportunities--a bibliography of books and websites, collage skills as well as music for the song itself.

Says Kirkus Reviews, "... Paper-collage, colored-pencil and pastel artwork is filled with gorgeous textures that echo the natural world of the forest." A first purchase for school and public libraries, and a handy home activity book.

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!

Sally Forth! The Nature Girls by Aki

WE'RE NATURE GIRLS! WE MUST EXPLORE!

WE PACK OUR BAGS; WE'RE OUT THE DOOR!

That intrepid troupe of explorers are back. Having acclimated to all modes of meteorology, the Weather Girls are now the Nature Girls, pith helmets in place, and are off to roam in search of each biome on their planet.

There's the ocean! On the beach they don bathing suits, flippers, and wet suits to go deep under the sea to swim with dolphins.

And after drying off and trying out their tropical outfits, they set forth through the rain forests, where there are colorful birds, shy sloths, and parrots who peer at them curiously. Who are this flock of yellow-clad creatures, the jungle denizens wonder?

Off to ogle the Outback and then study the Sahara, all sixteen girls clamber astride a camel for a ride through the desert. But then it's ta-ta to desert plains...

It's been nice.

Now... to find some ice.

The northern pines are pretty cool, but the Arctic tundra is better for mushing sled dogs, and then...

... it is time to seek some greenery scenery, and what is better that a tall, temperate forest tree, thousands of them, plenty to see.

But we must go...

More to see and do...

And much more to know, to master the world of biomes, in Aki's second book about her fearless female explorers in The Nature Girls (Henry Holt and Company, 2019), as sixteen little girls in two straight lines set forth to learn not only what a biome is, but also to learn how each one is unique. Portrayed vivaciously in colorful double-page spreads, author-illustrator Aki's same-but-different little adventurers learn how biologists characterize earth's regions, reinforced with a handy two-page appendix that summarizes each biome. Great for introducing units of nature science, this new picture belongs on library shelves along with its earlier companion book, The Weather Girls (see review here).

The New Monster Mash? Monster Boogie by Laurie Berkner

Creak!

The kids are nestled all snug in their beds, when... SOMETHING big, with horns, fangs, and claws comes through the door!

I'M THE BIGGEST MONSTER
YOU'VE EVER SEEN.
MY EYES ARE PURPLE,
AND MY TEETH ARE GREEN!

But the kids don't scream and run! They get up and DANCE!

They turn a little purple and begin to giggle, as the monster shows them how to do the Monster Wiggle!

Laurie Berkner, the famous song and dance gal for the preschool set, has an new assistant who knows how to twist and shout, in her latest dance book, Monster Boogie (Simon and Schuster, 2018). As depicted in the lively illustrations of the noted artist Ben Clanton, this monster is not exactly pretty, but he gets the tots away from their screens and moving--a good thing any day. Other books about polishing those monster moves are David Catrow's Monster Mash and Josie Bissett's Boogie Monster (read reviews here).

Solstice Time! Summer Colors by Diana Murray

Mama serves lemonade.

Daddy and Uncle bring chairs from the shade.

It's the lazy, hazy days of summer for the grownups.

But the summer colors of the flowers and fields run riot, and so do the vacationing kids. It's summer and they mean to make the most of it. Even a threatening cloudburst doesn't inhibit the joy of the two kids who own the landscape. Summer's lease has too short a stay, and they don't need Shakespeare to tell them that.

In Diana Murray's joyful Summer Color! (Little, Brown and Company, 2018), the kids hit the ground running and see it all--grazing deer, egrets taking flight, frogs hopping into the creek, and a water snake slithering silently through the water. Then the sky darkens and down come the showers, leaving behind a rising mist--and a rainbow to spot as they race to shelter on the porch.

There are no delicate watercolor scenes here. Artist Zoe Persico's landscapes pop with supersaturated hues. The deep greens of the trees and the bright, bright colors of the flowers fill the pages with the showy shades of high summer. And a good time is had by all.

"A chipper frolic through nature's colorful palette," says Kirkus Reviews.

One Size Fits All! Not So Small At All by Sandra Magsamen

Have you ever felt like you're just too small

To do important stuff in the world at all?

But look closely! There are plenty of teeny-tiny creatures that do really significant things for us all.

After all, bees are pretty small, but what they do is neat. They pollenate, so we have flowers, grains, and veggies, to eat.

Ants are mighty mites who can move big freight. All they have to do is cooperate!

A little worm can squirm and turn soil over, acting like a wiggly little bulldozer.

Sandra Magneson's brand-new Not So Small at All(Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky, 2018) points out the great things that small things do, and reminds youngsters that they have what it takes to do important work in the world, too.

You see, small can be big in so many ways.

It's just by being you that you'll always amaze!

Fun, kind, caring, creative, honest YOU.

And to make little ones feel that they have the power within to do great things, author Magsamen appends an empowering list of "Big Facts About Small Things." Artist Magsamen offers simple blackline faux naif illustrations with humorous small ones doing big things to inspire the little ones to think big as they grow big.

Game Day Goodnight! Goodnight, Football by Michael Dahl

THE BLEACHERS ARE FULL,
FOR A VERY GOOD REASON.

THE BIG GAME IS TONIGHT.
IT'S FOOTBALL SEASON!

Full of excitement, the fans stream into the stadium, bundled up for the autumn weather, with cushions and streamers and high hopes for the home team.

Cheerleaders shout and leap as the teams take the field, and the bands strike up their fight songs. The drama builds as the two teams line up for the first play.

And then the game begins.

THE RECEIVER BREAKS LOOSE
AND STANDS ALL ALONE....

REACHES UP, GRABS THE BALL...
... HE'S IN THE END ZONE!

It's all there--the quarterback's snap, the clash of the linemen, the scent of hot dogs and popcorn in the air, the celebration after the touchdown, and all the fun of the spectacle of football, from the kickoff to the final handshakes between winners and losers, in Michael Dahl's new Goodnight Football (Sports Illustrated Kids Bedtime Books) (Capstone Young Readers, 2017), as his young football fan enjoys his first game. And as the crowd exits the stadium, he remembers to bid all of it a good goodnight:

GOODNIGHT, BLEACHERS,
GOODNIGHT, FANS!

GOODNIGHT, FIELD
AND CONCESSION STANDS.

In most bedtime stories, children settle down with Teddy bears or toy trucks, but this young football fan falls off to sleep in his helmet, still holding on to his football, not long after that trademark moon rises over the goalposts. Dahl's rhyming verse catches all the pageantry of the football game for families who are football fans, making use of terms along the way to familiarize youngsters with the vocabulary of the game. As she did in Dahl's first sports bedtime tale, Goodnight Baseball (Sports Illustrated Kids Bedtime Books) (see review here), artist Christina Forshay's illustrations begin with endpapers of the gridiron and catch the movement, the colorful action, of the big game in soft autumnal tones that lead the listening child toward sleepytime in his own bed.

Cupcake Crime Wave! Pete the Cat and the Missing Cupcakes by Kimberley and James Dean

PETE AND GUS WERE AS BUSY AS COULD BE.

THEY WERE GETTING READY FOR THE CUPCAKE PARTY.

The busy bakers soon have a row of ten delectable-looking decorated cupcakes lined up on the windowsill to cool.

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?

Gus and Pete begin cleaning up the kitchen, when...

"OH, NO! SOME OF THE CUPCAKES ARE GONE!"

There are only eight cupcakes left. 10 - 8 =? Pete the Cat calculates. Two cupcakes have been confiscated by some malefactor! Who could it be? Pete postulates Squirrel. There are sprinkles under the window and Squirrel has a thing for sprinkles. But Squirrel has witnesses. She was downtown spelling in the spelling bee!

And while Pete the Cat and Gus the Duck are dithering, two more swiftly vanish. 8 - 2 = 6!

Pete and Gus abandon party prep and go into detective mode. Outside the scene-of-the-crime sill, they detect a trace of three-toed tracks leading away from the window! Could the thief be Alligator?

But Alligator has an alibi. And while they are interrogating him, four more cupcakes are purloined!

Some fast subtraction follows: 6 - 4 = 2! Then they spot a ladder nearby, and immediately they suspect low-to-the-ground turtle.

"IT CAN'T BE ME. I WAS SWIMMING IN THE SEA!" IS TURTLE'S PLEA.

And when they turn back toward Pete's house, the truth is revealed. The last two cupcakes seem to have been stolen! 2 - 2 = 0! Could the perpetrator be Grumpy Toad?

It's some subtraction sleuthing for Pete the Cat, in his latest picture book adventure by the dynamic duo, Kimberley and James Dean's Pete the Cat and the Missing Cupcakes (Harper, 2016). Ever since that blueberry pie cooling on the windowsill disappeared in Crosby Bonsall's classic I-Can-Read mystery, The Case of the Hungry Stranger (I Can Read Level 2), the who-got-the-goodies mysteries have been popular fare for primary readers, and James Dean's optimistic Pete the Cat cuts his detective teeth on this new cupcake crime story. Kimberley Dean provides the rhyming couplets, and James Dean provides the colorful illustrations in his signature style in this already top-selling mathematical mystery for their myriad fans.

Heart to Heart! Evermore Dragon by Barbara Joose

AT THE BREAK OF DERRY-DAY

THE FRIENDS DECIDED WHAT TO PLAY.

"HIDE-AND-SEEK! HIDE-AND-SEEK!"

DRAGON JUMPED UP AND DOWN. "ME FIRST!"

While Girl closes her eyes to count, Dragon hustles off to hide--behind a rather small (that is to say, way too little rock to hide his bulky, angular body. But Girl kindly pretends to search for him fruitlessly.

SHE PEEKED INSIDE HIS LAIR.

"NO, HE ISN'T THERE!

As she feigns being flummoxed, Dragon jumps out with a jolly "BOO!" and Girl declares him the cleverest Dragon ever!

But now it is Girl's turn to hide and she is determined to show Dragon she can be truly clever. She climbs inside a hole in a tree, and totally concealed, she waits to be found.

DRAGON LOOKS EVERYWHERE... EVERY HERE, EVERY THERE.

And Girl waits... and waits, and finally falls asleep in the cozy dark of the hollow. But when she awakes, it's not bright derry-day; it is  a deep, deep dark outside her hiding place, too. Where is Dragon? Girl tries not to cry, but she cannot control the loud, fast beating of her heart.

And still searching, the loyal Dragon's super senses catch the faint sound of her heart.

AND HE BREATHED HIS DRAGON FIRE

AND IT LIGHTED UP THE SKY.

And all's well that ends well for the frightened maiden and her protector dragon, in Caldecott-winning author (for Mama, Do You Love Me?) Barbara Joosse in her Evermore Dragon (Candlewick Press, 2015), a companion book to her Lovabye Dragon. (see my 2012 review here). Damsels and dragons are a staple of folkloric tales, and Joose's clever wordplay and artist Randy Cecil's atypical fairy-tale illustrations make a striking pair together in this quixotic picture book. As Publishers Weekly puts it, "The unexpected contours of Cecil's figures, like Girl's pancake-flat head and Dragon's ping pong ball eyes, add smiles, but there's also unexpected depth in the tiny, scratchy strokes and dusky shades of his paintings. It's a noteworthy alternative to more commercially flavored princess stories."

Pooch Par Excellence: The Perfect Dog by John O'Hurley

"Is there a dog that is perfect?” my son asked on a whim."

Perfect for what? If you consider all the curious cross-breeds and marvelous mutts, as well as the plenitudes of purebreds, there is no doubt there is a dog that is perfect for every purpose.

John O'Hurley's photographic essay, aimed at canine-loving kids, uses double-page spreads to set off charming illustrations of each dog against a one-line description of a desirable doggy quality:

Ears that are floppy....

Or cropped and alert...

Eyes that are sleepy...

Or perky and pert....?

Some of the breeds, such as the Labrador and golden retrievers, Dalmatians and Chihuahuas, will be identifiable by youngsters, and others, like the sleepy, wrinkly Shar Pei, will take a bit of research to identify, since the author offers no glossary of the breeds shown.

But in John O'Hurley's latest, The Perfect Dog (Grosset & Dunlap, 2013), the color photos of dogs doing what dogs do are  quite charming. O'Hurley's brief rhyming narrative is easily accessible for beginning readers, some of whom will undoubtedly fall in love with their perfect dog before this little book ends, while the wondering child character settles for his stuffed dog as the perfect bedtime buddy.

The dog that is perfect is the one next to you.

!

Thank Ewe, Mom: I Love Ewe: An Ode to Animal Mothers by Aaron Zenz

MY MOM'S A HEN--

BUT LOOK AGAIN!

HENS LIVE UNDERWATER, TOO!

No cluck cluck for these animal mothers; glub glub and blub blub  is more like it for crab and lobster moms, also known as hens.

Some feline animal mothers have elegant, mellifluous appellations, like the lioness, tigress, and leopardess.  And check out Mama Fox's fine moniker: she's a vixen! A goat mama is a nanny, and so a boisterously loud one is a "hootin' nanny," right?

Some animal mothers borrow their names from humans: Mrs. O'Possum is a Jill, and Ma Donkey is a Jenny.  Equine moms are always mares, but mother bears share their titles with mother pigs--they are both sows. And if a baby hollers for Mama Cow, a bovine won't be the only one to answer: Mama Moose, Mrs. Seal, and Mother Hippo and Rhino will report for cow duty, too.

Human mothers have lots of names, too--mom, mum, mommy, mummy, ma, mama, momma, mither, and that's just in English!  But a mom that is a sheep is the only one to which her baby is likely to say I Love Ewe: An Ode to Animal Mothers (Walker, 2013), Aaron Zenz's clever rhyming book about  what we call animal moms.

And for the upcoming Fathers Day, pick a passel of papas in Zenz' newest, a tribute to animal dads' names that is  just as clever and comic--Hug a Bull: An Ode to Animal Dads (Walker, 2013). Zenz points out that the bull that gets a hug could be a gentleman bovine or or perhaps a father giraffe, walrus, moose or alligator! While a mother duck or goose is predictably a hen, her male consort is called drake.

As in his companion book, 27 animal parents are featured in Zenz's pleasant, curvy illustrations. Other book by Zenz include his treatise on baby animal names, Chuckling Ducklings and Baby Animal Friends, his very popular The Hiccupotamus,  and its companion book, The Chimpansneeze.  Having fun with words while coming up with new vocabulary terms is Aaron Zenz's specialty.

Cat Connoisseur: I Don't Want a Cool Cat by Emma Dodd

I DON'T WANT A COOL CAT.

A TREAT-ME-LIKE-A-FOOL CAT.

As every cat owner has learned, there are as many cat personalities as there are cats, and our little would-be cat fancier is not being finicky as the proverbial feline when she sets out to find a perfect personality fit for her own pet.

Our little girl, with her pink dress and neat Mary Jane slippers, knows that a haughty Siamese will hog her bed and leave her the cast-off cat bed. That's not the cat for her!

She knows she doesn't want a fluffy, stuffy, foofy cat, or an orange-striper Tom spoiling for a fight. She definitely does not want a feed-me-now greedy cat, so stout he gets stuck in the pet door on the way to the food bowl. And nix to that prowly-scowly- yowly cat with a cat-itude.

There's got to be the right cat out there for a girl with an empty lap.

NOT A SCRATCH OR SCRAP CAT.

A CURL-UP-IN-MY-LAP CAT--

A GLAD-WHEN-I-COME-HOME CAT!

In the aesthetically delightful Emma Dodd's artistic hands, her latest, I Don't Want a Cool Cat!, (Little, Brown, 2010) is a fun and funny lesson in cat selection. Dodd's delicious illustrations, done up in clever double-page spreads with dramatic changes in perspective and perfect caricatures of the kitty types she describes, are spot-on in generating laughs, even without the text. But the rhythmic couplets, doubly appealing with their internal rhymes presented one line per page, are a joy to read, silently or aloud.

Great for story times or even for beginners to read solo, this one works well with Dodd's earlier companion book, I Don't Want a Posh Dog, for a pet-perfect pair.

Fall-out! There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves by Lucille Colandro

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED SOME LEAVES.

I DON'T KNOW WHY SHE SWALLOWED THOSE LEAVES.

PERHAPS SHE'LL SNEEZE!

That omnivorous old lady is back for another gluttonous seasonal session, this time in a salute to the icons of autumn. In turn she gobbles down an old shirt to hold the leaves, a pumpkin for the shirt to wear, a pole to hold up the pumpkin, and some pants and a rope to hold up the pants, all to fill out the ensemble. She's surely getting full, but at last it's time for the dessert....

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED SOME HAY.

SHE DIDN'T SAY WHY SHE SWALLOWED SOME HAY....

SHE DID IT WITH EASE

AND STARTED TO SNEEZE--

ACHOOO!

Even preschoolers unfamiliar with the other Lucille Colandro books will probably be similarly bursting to tell what's going to come next--when with that sneeze out comes a fully assembled scarecrow, the historic symbol (going back to medieval England's "Corn Mann") to wish one and all a Happy Fall!

Colandro's latest entry into this popular series, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves! (Scholastic, 2010) follows the familiar folk song's catchy, kid-pleasing rhythm and rhyme scheme in this salute to the changing seasons. Follow this one up with her There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat! for a seasonal sing-along stew to welcome both fall and Halloween.

Chick Lit: There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick by Lucille Colandro

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A CHICK!

I DON'T KNOW WHY SHE SWALLOWED A CHICK.

BUT SHE DIDN'T GET SICK!

But, of course, if you've encountered Lucille Colandro's old lady before, you know she's not heading for digestive distress at all. Not this gal. Her consumption always ends in gustatory glory, and in her latest alimentary adventure, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Chick, this old lady has an appetite for Easter excitement.

In short order, so to speak, this old lady goes on to gobble an egg, some straw, candy, a basket, a bow ... and, well, you can see where this one is going. As she skips down the trail on a day that is sunny, there's a strategic stumble, and OOOPS! out pops the entire Easter basket, chick, egg, straw, candy, with perky bow somehow tied jauntily atop the handle!

And...surprise, surprise, surprise...

GUESS WHO SHE MEETS?

THE EASTER BUNNY!

With Jared Lee's familiar illustrations, the author's newest addition to her seasonal stories of the old lady who always gets it together for a holiday, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Chick (Scholastic, 2010), with its familiar folksong rhythm, rhyming triplets and cumulative story line, is a fine addition to the Colandro catalog. Kids who already know the There Was an Old Lady 3 Pack: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat! / There Was a Cold Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow! / There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell! There Was an Old Lady 3 Pack: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat! / There Was a Cold Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow! / There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell! stories will immediately chime in on the building refrain in a rhyming Easter story just made to be read aloud. And, after all, for Easter, it's more than appropriate to ham it up!