Ricky's Birthday

PreS-K—Ricky, a rabbit with one floppy ear, is having a birthday. He wakes in the morning with a feeling that the day will be perfect. He and his mother make carrot pancakes, and he waits with anticipation for his friends to come to his party. But Annie is missing. She has sent a note that leads the partygoers to follow arrows along a trail into the woods, where she gives Ricky a red birthday crown and three kisses. The bunnies return to the house for the rest of the festivities, and Ricky's father arrives with a magic set. Ricky concludes that his birthday was like magic since he aged one whole year in just a day. Van Genechten's acrylic paintings over graph paper are boldly outlined and appealing, and the art is large and uncluttered enough for group sharing. However, Ricky (2008) and Ricky Is Brave (both Clavis, 2011) have more-interesting and better-plotted story lines.—Diane Antezzo, Ridgefield Library, CT