(3) K-3 Illustrated by Petros Bouloubasis. In this twist on the nursery rhyme, young scientist Mary has "her little lab" but no friends, so she invents a machine, the "Sheepinator," to create a companion. Her scientific success brings her first ovine then human company, but not without complications. A bouncy rhyme scheme follows the familiar tune. Spindly illustrations, with broad-faced, skinny-limbed humans and very woolly sheep, maintain the story's more-silly-than-scientific playfulness.

Reviewer: Dorrie Karlin