DMITRI THE ASTRONAUT

Agee (The Return of Freddy LeGrand, 1992, etc.) scores again with this utterly engaging tale of interplanetary friendship. Leaving behind Lulu, a small alien that looks like a cross between a duck and a shmoo, Dmitri returns to Earth after gathering moon rocks for two years to find that no one remembers him. His cargo has been rendered worthless by the exotic prizes brought back by other space explorers. He despondently throws his sack in the trash and wanders off to would-be anonymity. He doesn't see Lulu waddle out of his bag; she quickly becomes a huge public sensation. Ignoring the crowds, however, Lulu draws a bubbleheaded figure over and over, until Dmitri appears to see what all the fuss is about, and the two are happily reunited. Agee uses broad brushstrokes and heavy lines, but his figures, especially Lulu, are surprisingly expressive, and the story ends with a flourish as Dmitri and Lulu lead a parade beneath humongous effigy balloons. The last line of the book leads readers right back to its beginning, where they will discover just how Lulu arrived on this planet. A charmer. (Picture book. 5-7)