GOOD JOB, OLIVER!
by Laurel Molk & illustrated by Laurel Molk
PLB 0-517-70976-7 Oliver, a rabbit, wants to compete in the big leagues in the annual strawberry-growing contest. He is determined to grow the biggest and best strawberries, despite the teasing of the larger rabbits: “Little bunnies grow little berries.” With encouragement from his mother, Oliver goes ahead, and surprises everyone when he invents crafty ways to keep birds, gophers, and bears away from his patch; he outsmarts the others and grows a prize berry. While Molk’s storytelling is entertaining, her watercolors steal the show. Her inventive use of the page makes the book practically boundless—bunnies on pogo sticks bounce out the top, gophers burrow out the bottom, and a springtime palette blooms in every corner. (Picture book. 4-7)