THE UNDERWEAR SALESMAN

The goofy cover and subtitle alone will raise giggles as they set the stage for Lewis to play poetic pundit for 47 jobs—odd jobs. To name just a few: Elevator Operator, Ice Sculptor, Belly Dancer, Highway Line Painter, Marathon Runner, Banana Picker, Crossword Puzzle Maker, Ventriloquist, Acupuncturist, Plumber (the job “inside the Twoilet Zone”) and even Librarian. Bloch’s quirky, digital collage illustrations play up the silliness of the rhymes, some of which are better and some are “verse,” while the wacky page compositions caricature the unusual careers. Some poetry lines and details in the illustrations skew more to adult humor than children’s; the Fashion Designer spread, for instance, includes a small drawing of Karl Lagerfeld. But what a way to liven up Career Day! Kids will love the humor—a sample, from the Skyscraper Window Washer: “Window pain: / Ordinary words / Cannot express / My thoughts on birds.” The picture shows the man with birds (and a bit of poo) on his head and his squeegee. A solid selection. (Picture book/poetry. 7-10)