Baby's First Bank Heist

PreS-Gr 1—Animal-obsessed baby Frank longs for a pet, but his parents feel that owning one is prohibitively costly. While Frank is at a bank with his mom, the solution becomes clear—to fund his dream of keeping a "furry friend," Frank just needs to rob the place! Conveniently clad in a black-and-white striped onesie, the little criminal dons a bandit mask and sneaks past the bank's impressive security defenses. Cramming his suit full of bills, he rides the bus with his mom, and all of the passersby except a dog are oblivious to the comically oversize infant. Once home, he buys a host of animals off the Internet and conceals them in increasingly unlikely spots. "There were leopards in his cupboards and a beaver in the bath. And Frank was really struggling to hide his new giraffe." The jig is up, however, once Frank's mom finds "a rhino in the shed" and discovers Frank's secret stash. To recompense the bank in full, the family opens a zoo in their home, with baby Frank happy at last, "behind bars." Whalley's jaunty verse is a delight to read aloud, and the deadpan tone is deftly fleshed out by Collins's playful gouache-and-ink cartoon illustrations. The lovable googly-eyed protagonist and a plethora of silly details will tickle sharp-eyed readers.