Never Ask a Dinosaur to Dinner

PreS-K—Through a string of comedic encounters with several animals, from a dinosaur to a bison, a brown-skinned boy gets ready for bed, often with disastrous results. After cautioning readers not to do such things as "use a tiger as a towel" or "share your toothbrush with a shark," the story determines that, instead of a herd of wild animals, children should "stick to ONE teddy" at bedtime, along with a "flock of sheep," which are pictured in the boy's dreams. With plenty of slapstick, this humorous picture book is sure to elicit laugher from children, who will delight in the silly antics of the animals and the poor child who has to endure them all. While the boy crosses paths with some dangerous and ferocious beasts, the characters are drawn in a cartoonlike, comical style, which makes them appear appropriately buffoonish rather than scary. Unfortunately, the story is marred by a handful of awkward rhymes, such as "And build a great big beaver dam, and/fill that whole thing up with salmon" and "Because the first thing that you'll learn'll/Be a barn owl is nocturnal."