THE MIGHTIEST

No need to strut when you have the stuff, as a little old lady demonstrates to a bunch of would-be kings of the forest. A lion, a bear, and an elephant stumble across a golden crown perched on a rock. Inscribed on the rock are the words “For the Mightiest,” and of course, all three think that makes it theirs. To prove it, they decide to see who can scare that little old lady as she walks through the woods. Each manages to scare the daylights out of her, to about the same degree, and they start squabbling all over again until a great ogre falls upon them, swoops them in his arms, and says, “I think I’ll drop you off a cliff.” That has the three shaking in their respective paws and feet until a voice booms over the hubbub: “George!” It’s that little old lady. George the giant jumps and drops his quarry. Once it is clear who is the mightiest, the lady declines the crown—“How flattering. But, I really don’t need this”—in a refreshing turn of the tables. Kasza’s drawings are plain and effective, none more so than that last page in which a new crew comes upon the crown and starts the endless bickering about power and prestige all over again. A new lesson from the mistress of gentle teaching. (Picture book. 2-5)