Morris…the Downside-Up Bat

PreS-Gr 1—After a small bat escapes from an owl by hanging "downside-up," he realizes that he likes the new view. The other bats disapprove of such tradition-busting moves, but Morris shrugs off the negativity with nonchalance: "Life isn't perfect, he thought, and flew off to do something he enjoyed." The free spirit also discovers that he has musical talent and yearns to perform as "Morris the Magnificent Singer." When he tries to enter a talent competition, a blockade of bullies jeers, "You're not a real bat!…You can't even hang right. How can you act?" Undeterred, he triumphantly appears at the contest and wins over the audience. Karpes's ink and watercolor illustrations show Morris outfitted in a black shaggy wig and gold chains while strumming a guitar and belting out "You ain't nuthin' but a loll-i-pop." The text is often repetitive and occasionally awkward. A slight story about nonconformity.—Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada