Surprise! Happy Birthday, Hamster! by Cynthia Lord

YOU ARE INVITED TO HAMSTER'S BIRTHDAY PARTY.

BUT SHHHHHHHH! IT'S A SURPRISE!

What's more fun than a birthday party? A surprise birthday party--especially when the guest of honor is totally clueless.

Hamster is sure that his friends, especially his best friend Bulldog, will remember his birthday, but as the day goes along without a mention of the big event, Hamster starts to fret.

Sure, Bulldog comes over and congenially invites Hamster to keep him company as he does his daily errands. First stop is the bakery, and Hamster looks hopefully at the birthday cakes in the case.

PINK CAKE, BLUE CAKE.

CHOCOLATE THROUGH-AND-THROUGH CAKE.

"WHICH ONE WOULD YOU CHOOSE?"

Hamster volunteers that he would picks the biggest, with the most frosting, but Bulldog just nods and orders a bag of dog biscuits. Hamster's heart sinks.

A trip to the toy store is even more disheartening. All those nifty toys, and despite yearning looks and hints by Hamster ("I LOVE toys!"), Bulldog selects a utilitarian ball for himself.

"WAIT! HAVEN'T YOU FORGOTTEN SOMETHING?" HAMSTER SAYS.

Bulldog agrees, and heads on to finish his rounds in the barber shop and party store, where he bypasses all of Hamster's hints and glancing at the festive balloons and pirate costumes, buys a greeting card "for a friend," and declares himself satisfied with his completed shopping expedition.

Hamster heads for his house, sadly contemplating a lonely birthday, and morosely and perfunctorily invites his friend in when they reach his door.

And of course by this time everyone but Hamster knows what is going to be behind that door! Newbery-winning author Cynthia Lord's and artist Derek Anderson's brand-new Happy Birthday Hamster (Scholastic, 2011) ends with a happy surprise--a happy birthday surprise in which Bulldog's assistant mice, only partially in view, stealthily taking notes all through the expedition, have picked up on all of Hamster's hints along the way, and he finds just the kind of birthday party he dreamed of. Lord's verse and Anderson's illustrations, first found together in their hit Hot Rod Hamster, are full of birthday cheer sure to please honorees and guests alike.

The Gang's All Here: Llama, Llama and Friends created by Anna Dewdney

Llama's eyes pop open as the morning sun warms his face. He hops into his overalls and rushes downstairs.

Mama Llama needs his help!

Llama Llama has errands to do for Mama, and with his trusty Fuzzy Llama and Mama's list in the basket, he hops on his scooter and sets out.

And the gang's all there as he rolls along. He meets his woolly friend Euclid who helps him pick out some streamers.

Why does Mama Llama need them? he wonders.

It's off to Daddy Gnu's Bakery, where he stops to help little Nelly Gnu finish her mural and gets the cupcakes on his list. He passes Luna playing in the park and she helps pick the flowers on his list. He puffs up the hill, where he meets Gilroy Goat playing with his soccer ball, and while he stops to kick a few, his list blows away and he only catches up with it right at Gram and Grampa Llama's door, where they meet him with a stack of colored paper. It's quite a load, and Llama Llama wonders out loud what in the world Mama Llama is going to do with all the things on her list.

Youngsters will doubtless be in on the secret at this point, when Llama Llama arrives to find that he has the supplies for the big SURPRISE. Mama Llama and all his friends are there for the party, in Llama Llama and Friends (Penguin, 2017). Anna Dewdney's much-loved character Llama Llama has returned in this story illustrated by J. J. Harrison, to celebrate Little Llama's new video series by Netflix. Share this one with Cynthia Lord's Happy Birthday Hamster (Hot Rod Hamster) (see review here) and don't forget Llama Llama's companion book, Llama Llama and the Lucky Pajamas,