(2) K-3 Illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Presto and Zesto find themselves in Limboland just in time for the wedding of the sugar beets. But what can they bring for a gift? The droll (but overextended and arbitrary) text includes lots of wordplay. The watercolor illustrations are united in their tone, style, and sense of fun. A note by Yorinks explains how the story came to be, how it was lost, and how it came back together after Sendak's death.

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2018

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Braden Lamb & Shelli Paroline. Mickey Spitz, raised like a bloodhound and trained as a super smeller, learns to be more kid than canine while processing his grief after he's orphaned. Humor stems from the premise of this 1950s-set graphic novel, and the heartfelt moments are as tender as they come. The minimalist palette shifts hues between panels and pages, and retro details create a nostalgic feel. Back matter features character sketches and book creation information.

Reviewer: Elisa Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2017

(3) K-3 I Can Read Book series. Illustrated by Aleksey Ivanov & Olga Ivanov. Flappy, a collie, and Scrappy, who looks like a mutt, star in three short stories. In the first, Flappy, misunderstanding the farm animals' mouths-full-of-food greetings, thinks she's being made fun of; in the second, she tries to play catch; then Scrappy's in for a surprise on his birthday. The texts use gentle humor, and the illustrations have an eye-pleasing, pastoral sensibility.

Reviewer: Susan Halperin

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Doug Cushman. When fruit seller Sy fades away to invisibility one morning, it's an inexplicable inconvenience: though doctors are unfazed, Sy's customers are put off by his swathed, subsequently mummy-like, head. The appealing premise, fey logic, and offbeat hero are much abetted by Cushman's deftly drafted illustrations with a bright palette keyed to Sy's beloved fruit.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2011

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Richard Egielski. While Tony snoozes, his school supplies tackle his writing assignment. The problem, as Yorinks shows through funny, spirited dialogue, is the preponderance of desk-top know-it-alls ("That is the worst beginning I've ever heard," crabs the ballpoint pen). Depicted in Egielski's ink and watercolor cartoons with expressive spindly limbs and wide oval eyes, each argumentative artiste displays a personality befitting its function.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2009

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Jos. A. Smith. This Halloween tale is not for the faint of heart. A scary witch has everything she wants--except a child. She fashions herself a daughter out of straw, but the girl doesn't come to life until a real child is in danger. Smith's dark, moody paintings set the scene in the present day, making the eerie story even scarier for its immediacy.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) PS Illustrated by Adrienne Yorinks. A duck, Quack, visits the moon, but his animal friends miss him and vice versa, so he parachutes back to earth. The story, told almost entirely with the word "quack," is limp, but the point is well taken that children can interpret narrative from vocal inflection and images. The book's hallmark is its fabric-collage illustrations.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(1) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. This sequel to Company's Coming is, if anything, funnier than the first. The benign visitors from outer space want earthlings Moe and Shirley to cater their sister's wedding on Nextoo, which is located--wait for it--"next to Uranus." The broadly humorous, blithely innocent story is supported by the lighthearted illustrations, which are as funny in their juxtapositions of outlandish events and the everyday-ness of the characters' behavior as the text.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2002

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Small. This edition features a larger trim size and new colorization of the lively cartoon illustrations. When a spaceship lands next to the tool shed, Shirley invites the alien visitors to dinner. By the time the spacemen return, the house is surrounded by soldiers and police, but Shirley's trust in the face of hysteria reveals the spacemen's good intentions. Shirley's everyday reactions to the outsize events are hilarious.

Reviewer: Erica L. Stahler

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Martin Matje. The old kid-wants-a-dog plot line gets fresh treatment (if you can suspend disbelief) in this breezy, conversational narrative about a stubborn girl who isn't satisfied with the stuffed poodle her parents give her, even when he comes to life and starts talking to her one night. The pair, whimsically depicted in minimalist ink and watercolor illustrations, walk to Paris, save each other's lives, and become fast friends--all before sunrise.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann