(4) K-3 Illustrated by Giuliano Ferri. Ant compulsively counts his food stores while Grasshopper incessantly makes music. In a departure from tradition, Ant misses the fiddling when Grasshopper is silenced by winter's cold; finding him half-dead, Ant revives Grasshopper and joins him in song. Aesop's moral is superseded by a new one: "Everybody counts." It's all a little drawn out but also satisfying. Both bright-eyed creatures have personality.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(4) 4-6 When Falcon and her brother Toody are blown out of a plane's emergency door, Falcon lands safely--carried on dragon breath--and sets out to see if Toody survived as well. With the help of Aunt Emily and Blinda the witch, Falcon is reunited in Australia with both Toody and Egg (the dragon Falcon raised in Falcon's Egg). The scattershot plot is hard to engage with.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam