SKIPPYJON JONES IN MUMMY TROUBLE

When Skippyjon Jones, the Siamese boy kitty who thinks he’s a Chihuahua, reads about cat mummies in National Leographic (“thinking outside the [litter] box”), his overactive imagination whisks him off to Egypt (via his closet). His old amigos from his first two stories want to visit the Under Mundo “where mummitos rest in peas,” but first they have to answer the “Reedle of the Finx.” The farfetched antics in this third tale are peppered with the usual “Spanglish” wordplay and the acrylic, and pen-and-ink illustrations exaggerate the likable silliness to the nth degree. The opening scene of toilet paper strung ’round the bathroom will be familiar to many cat owners, for instance. And watching him wrapped like a mummy to meet King Rootin-Tootin-Kitten-Kabootin is a stitch. Egyptian references, like Osiris, will need to be explained, but fans will no doubt want more of the “beeg Chihuahua dude.” A bonus is the CD read by the author. (Picture book. 4-7)