(4) 4-6 Illustrated by John Manders. As with the other books in this series, rhyming couplets introduce a topic and lengthy sidebars provide more detailed information. The constraints of the format mean some topics are more relevant than others. For P readers learn the difference between a privateer and a buccaneer; "M is for Movie Pirates" seems like a stretch. Swarthy, caricatured illustrations accompany the lively text.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. On Christmas Eve, a lone sailor at watch witnesses the arrival of Master Chief Claus and his squadron of helpers as they deliver presents to the slumbering fleet at sea. The loose illustrations are caricaturish, but the rhymes are fairly precise. This treatment of Moore's classic poem may be best appreciated by military families.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Finnegan, a horse (and the narrator), and his partner, T.J. Fox, a New York City police officer, are a great team. They work the crowds in Times Square and find a little lost girl from Wyoming. Lively paintings filled with warmhearted caricatures of all kinds of city residents and tourists accompany the far-fetched but engaging text. Information about mounted police is appended.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Jack's father died of a broken heart after a giant stole his barbecue cookbook. Now Jack wants restitution. This Southwestern-fried "Jack and the Beanstalk" retelling expends so much effort on local (in this case, West Texas) flavor that it fails to serve a satisfying meal. Still, it's got regional appeal and is fun to read aloud. Manders's caricaturish illustrations add zing.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. After Grandpa Crow announces a party in his tree, forest animals stop by to play hide-and-seek, eat pizza and ice cream, make music, etc. The illustrations of goofy-looking critters are a good match for the singsongy rhymes, which include the arrhythmic groaner, "'Thanks a lot,' squeaked a mouse. / 'I love pizza. / There's nothing in the world / I'd rather eat-za!'"

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Three lonesome cowboys, stuck on the range with only cows and Cookie, their cook, are overjoyed to find Santy Claus serving their Christmas dinner on Cookie's day off. Kids will notice both the Santa hat in Cookie's back pocket when he returns and Cookie's clear surprise at finding a gift--from Santa. The amusing tale is illustrated with humorous cartoon art.

Reviewer: Luther B. Clegg

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Rhyming text describes how pirates add up skulls in math class, swear on the playground ("Aargh!"), and attempt mutiny at school before settling down for storytime. Watercolor, gouache, and colored-pencil illustrations show the pirates as eager students who just can't contain their enthusiasm. There's humor to be found in the premise, but it's a little less uproarious than advertised.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. After visiting a museum, Erin invites one of the dinosaurs to her sixth birthday party. She writes him a letter describing all the fun they'll have, from playing games and whacking a piñata to eating pizza and opening presents. Lively, cheerful illustrations humorously show the larger-than-life dino participating in the birthday activities as Erin describes them in her letter.

Reviewer: Patricia Riley

(2) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. When Santa decides to take his first vacation, the reaction of children around the world surprises him. McGinley's rhyming text was originally published with illustrations by Kurt Werth and later inspired a classic stop-motion animated TV special. This newly illustrated edition maintains all of the original's read-aloud charm while accentuating its playfulness with Manders's vibrant gouache and pencil illustrations.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: December, 1957; November, 2010

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Having helped composer Giuseppe Verdi overcome writer's block, Nini, an ordinary white cat living in a Venetian café, attracts attention from Italian royalty, a Russian czar, and the emperor of Ethiopia. The highly inventive and entertaining story, accompanied by vibrant gouache and colored-pencil illustrations, is based on historical events; an author's note tells more about the players.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies receive a mysterious threat about an impending invasion of their idyllic island home. Henry's thoughtful and thorough preparation (writing a how-to book for dealing with the unknown enemy) serves to protect his fellow rabbits from a fierce chicken pirate attack. Crafted with equal parts humor and attitude, the lively illustrations effectively complement the quirky story line.

Reviewer: Sethany Rancier Alongi

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Colored by Vince Dorse. Lasky's story focuses on the Billington brothers (who did exist, although the historical record is sketchy), two boys full of mischief who traveled on the Mayflower. While the cartoon-panel format and humor can be hard to follow, they do demonstrate the book's lesson: not all those who came to America with the Pilgrims were virtuous, pious, or even well behaved.

Reviewer: Betty Carter

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by John Manders. Just when Pete (Pete & Fremont) the pink poodle's circus act gets axed, he and rival Rita the chimp are whisked away--to Kansas--by a tornado. The exotic animals are out of place down on the farm, so they set off to reunite with their big-top friends. Pete's bombastic narration and accompanying black-and-white cartoon drawings add pep to this zany tale.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. This day-in-the-life picture book speculates on what the future might hold by examining where current technology could lead ("By 2030, individual holographic images can be projected so rapidly that they appear to move"). Plausible ideas are mixed with what-if fantasy in a way that can be confusing. Though the pages are crowded, playfully humorous illustrations help keep readers engaged. Websites. Bib.

Reviewer: David Elzey

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. To evade bedtime, Little Baby Mummy begs his own mummy to play a game of "Hide and Shriek," during which he gets the fright of his life--courtesy of a tiny mouse. Readers will enjoy having their expectations upended, and there's just enough comedy to declaw the eerie gouache illustrations, showing a foggy graveyard inhabited by Bones, Glob, and Drac.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. One summer day, four bored kids start a watermelon-seed-spitting free-for-all. The fun begins at home but eventually leads them to the village square, where even the mayor gets in on the action. The rhymes are airtight, and the watermelon pink–tinged cartoony illustrations do their job by capturing all the mischief-making.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. This story includes a sassy fairy (the story's narrator), three brothers, a princess in distress, and a shifty king who gets his comeuppance. The text tries too hard to be funny ("As fairies go, I'm not the flashy kind. Glass slippers and pumpkin carriages are just not my style"). Zany cartoon illustrations match the tone.

Reviewer: Amy Kellman

(2) K-3 Illustrated by John Manders. Jack the cat constructs the perfect nest for a chicken to lay an egg (so he can make an omelet), but the luxurious nest also attracts a duck and a goose. When the eggs hatch, Jack becomes an unwilling mama. Manders's large, exuberant gouache paintings have exactly the right cartoony style, with everything just a little cheesier and larger than life.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2007

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by John Manders. Pete the pink poodle is the star of the circus, until a misstep lands him in a less glamorous role. Pete's eventual friendship with crotchety new headliner Fremont, a bear who longs for the woods, might solve both their problems. Narrated by Pete with cocky, pun-laden aplomb, this imaginative novel is as over-the-top as the circus itself.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(3) K-3 Around-the-House History series. Illustrated by John Manders. In this work on the historical evolution of beds, bedrooms, and bedclothes, Lauber begins by presenting sleeping arrangements during the Stone Age (a clan on the ground) and comes full circle with a contemporary family camping out (again on the ground). The cartoonish illustrations depict different styles of beds and homes, and humorously anachronistic speech bubbles add levity to the carefully developed history. Bib.

Reviewer: Betty Carter