MILO AND THE FIRE ENGINE PARADE

With blithe disregard for credibility or consequences, Jane showers young Milo with treats and rewards after he wreaks destruction along a parade route after blowing off parental orders. Despite being grounded, Milo chases his dog through a conveniently open gate, then knocks over a line of pushcarts along the way. Having created enough wreckage to reroute the parade, he elbows a firefighter, who benevolently gives him a T-shirt, then gets to “drive” a fire engine past his house. Showing not a trace of remorse in Johnson’s bland, smiley art, Milo returns home to mug at viewers while his sister makes a snide comment about how he missed everything. Even less discriminating readers will see a world of difference between David Shannon’s engaging, eponymous ne’er-do-well and this sociopath. (Picture book. 6-7)