WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?

Fourteen artists, nearly all of them household names, offer answers to the classic title question. The punch lines are as varied as the visuals, with chickens fleeing threats such as dinosaurs (Jon Agee); “mutated zombie chickens from Mars” (Harry Bliss); running toward a more glamorous henhouse (Marla Frazee), or an enticing tangle of mysterious creatures and shapes (Mary GrandPré). Some are crossing because the light changed (Lynn Munsinger, David Shannon), a baseball went through a window (Chris Sheban) or a tasty treat beckons (Judy Schachner, Jerry Pinkney, David Catrow). Chris Raschka closes with a sphinx looking up at the viewer, murmuring, “You tell me,” and all of the contributors’ chickens march across a final spread with jokey answers to another query: “Why did the artist cross the road?” Evidently offered not to support a charity but just for fun (plus a little promotion), this gallery of clever pullet surprises will draw crows of delight. (Picture book. 5-8, adult)