CORDUROY’S HIKE

Corduroy is lost and found once again in this new episode written around Don Freeman’s familiar characters. This time, he bounces out of Lisa’s knapsack on a hike, is abused by a passing troop of Cub Scouts, falls into a stream, and is back in Lisa’s hands by the end, somehow none the worse for wear. Eitzen’s illustrations, which resemble colored woodcuts, are done in a style reminiscent of Freeman’s, with darker lines and shadows. Unsurprisingly, Freeman’s name is the only one on the front cover. Exploitative? For sure. Superficial and derivative? Not really—but most of the emotional territory was already covered in A Pocket For Corduroy (1978), and the contraction-free text is wooden. (Easy reader. 5-7)