The Best Saturday Ever!

K-Gr 3—A dreary rainy day, no electricity, and a vivid imagination lead a boy to several fanciful adventures. The weekend is here, but it's too stormy for Robbie to go outside, so his mother encourages him to find something to do in his room until the weather improves. The youngster entertains himself by imagining he is a superhero, the captain of a rocket ship, and a ringmaster in a circus. He enjoys himself so much that he's actually sorry when the sun comes out. In rhyming couplets that don't always scan well, the narrative has a stilted cadence: "I have a cool red phone/I keep inside a secret place./It rings when there is danger/from behind its shiny case." The illustrations are done in the style of a graphic novel and fill the pages from edge to edge with dark, saturated colors and black outlines. The text appears in large circles throughout. Though the message is good, the delivery is not appealing, making this picture book an additional purchase.—Maryann H. Owen, Children's Literature Specialist, Mt. Pleasant, WI