(4) K-3 Let's Investigate with Nate series. Illustrated by Wes Hargis. PBS host/scientist Ball (in cartoon form) and a group of adventurous children travel back in time from a science museum to the Mesozoic era to return a wayward dinosaur to its rightful period. The main text briefly describes conditions in different geologic periods while dialogue bubbles convey the slight fictional frame story; one student's journal pages provide additional facts. A fossil-dig activity is appended. Glos.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(4) K-3 Let's Investigate with Nate series. Illustrated by Wes Hargis. This entry in the Magic School Bus read-alike series introduces a cartoon-illustrated version of real-life scientist Nate Ball and four children at a science museum. Shrinking as small as molecules, they travel through the water cycle (although the definition misrepresents the process). Speech-bubble dialogue accompanies the cursory facts, with pages from one child's journal reinforcing vocabulary concepts throughout. A relevant experiment is appended. Glos.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(4) K-3 Let's Investigate with Nate series. Illustrated by Wes Hargis. Real-life scientist Nate Ball and four kid "Investigators" hop into a spacecraft and visit major objects in the solar system in this installment of the Magic School Bus read-alike series. Alongside cartoon illustrations, their speech-bubble dialogue accompanies superficial text about the system's formation, gravity, planets, asteroids, and more. Pages from child Braden's journal reinforce vocabulary concepts throughout. A relevant experiment is appended. Glos.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. Agatha (Agatha Parrot and the Odd Street School Ghost; Agatha Parrot and the Heart of Mud) and her offbeat friends are babysitting their school's newly hatched chickens when one goes missing. Wacky adventures ensue as Agatha and her cohorts worry the chick has come to a dreadful end on their watch. Energetic illustrations accompany the fast-paced action, which culminates in a surprise ending.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. A revolting breakfast cereal figures prominently in Ghost, as saucy narrator Agatha and her friends try to discover if a ghost is haunting their school. In Mud, Agatha's scheme to help a friend rejoin the soccer team becomes much more complicated than she planned. These light, fast-moving stories from the UK, profusely illustrated with comical black-and-white drawings, will attract fans of broad humor. Review covers the following titles: Agatha Parrot and the Heart of Mud and Agatha Parrot and the Odd Street School Guest.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) 1-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. A revolting breakfast cereal figures prominently in Ghost, as saucy narrator Agatha and her friends try to discover if a ghost is haunting their school. In Mud, Agatha's scheme to help a friend rejoin the soccer team becomes much more complicated than she planned. These light, fast-moving stories from the UK, profusely illustrated with comical black-and-white drawings, will attract fans of broad humor. Review covers the following titles: Agatha Parrot and the Heart of Mud and Agatha Parrot and the Odd Street School Guest.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. "Oh, and every third Thursday about half past one / All the gravity stops--wow, is that ever fun!" When I Grow Up's Billy returns, this time encountering a new teacher who considers his creativity-fostering embellishments outrageous lies. Yankovic's musician training comes through: his rhymes don't miss a beat. Hargis will get laughs with his tousled, leg-pulling art.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. "There comes a time in all kids' lives when they need to create their own country." So begins this clever mock how-to, in which an independence-seeking girl suffers "invasions" (little brother), deals with "foreign leaders" (Mom), and finally achieves peace (she makes her brother a "citizen"). Details in Hargis's droll art do the explaining of the girl's creative leadership qualities.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. In pop-music parodist Weird Al's witty literary debut, eight-year-old Billy is asked by his teacher what he wants to be when he grows up. This query releases a veritable flood of ideas, including "big sumo wrestler or hedge-fund investor / Or smelly-pit-sniffing deodorant tester." Yankovic's toe-tapping salute to childhood curiosity features illustrations that are as warm as they are wacky.

Reviewer: Nell Beram

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Wes Hargis. Amusing cartoons illustrate the story of the first transcontinental car trip: a 1903 adventure completed by Dr. Horatio Jackson, mechanic Sewall J. Crocker, and a bulldog named Bud. Upbeat but choppy present-tense text outlines the journey's pitfalls including mud-soaked roads and flying grasshoppers. An afterword, including archival photographs, provides historical context and information about the three characters' later lives. Reading list, websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Carrie Harasimowicz Sullivan