Give Me Back My Book!

This picture-book collaboration is many things: a buddy story; a humorous clash between two bibliophiles; even a sneaky introduction to the parts of a book. But it's mostly about teamwork--although the two cartoony protagonists, Redd (a furry, bespectacled monster) and Bloo (a buck-toothed, egg-shaped bunny with a scribble-scrabble tail) must learn this lesson the hard way. From the jump, Bloo snarls, "Hey, wait a second, Redd. That's MY book." Redd is certain that Bloo must be mistaken, and proceeds to describe in detail what makes the book so distinctive: "a hard cover, a nice spine...letters on each page and they are gathered together to form words...and every now and again there is something called an illustration." Each point sends Bloo spiraling ("Mine has all of those things!"), until a particular bent page identifies Bloo as the rightful owner. A tug-of-war erupts, only to be interrupted by Bookworm, who swipes the volume and heads back to her hidey-hole; to get it back, Redd and Bloo hatch a bait-and-switch scheme that necessitates working together. Redd and Bloo are distinctly illustrated, and each receives a unique (handwritten) font. The addition of photographed real-world items (such as markers, scissors, and construction paper) provides a refreshing visual pop in the nearly all-white backdrop. A natural companion to Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant's equally quarrelsome That's (Not) Mine, and perhaps best read aloud with a pal. patrick gall