TURKEY SURPRISE

Two pilgrim brothers set off to hunt up a turkey for Thanksgiving dinner. “We’ll pluck him, and stuff him, / and cook him up right. / We’ll gobble, gobble turkey / for dinner tonight!” Their song forms a refrain throughout, but the smaller pilgrim brother begins to have second thoughts. He most certainly sees a terrified turkey a number of times, but he always leads his brother in another direction. Meanwhile, Turkey tries hiding in a tree, a gopher hole and a pond—with disastrous results. Then small pilgrim brother helps Turkey hide in a woodpile, and the two boys take home a huge pumpkin for dinner instead. Vegetarian storytellers now have an excellent companion to Dav Pilkey’s Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving (1990) for their cruelty-free holiday storytimes. Wickstrom’s high-spirited hunting brothers and the most expressive turkey in recent memory are a perfect match for Archer’s sweet hide-and-seek story. Even the most carnivorous listeners will enjoy this yummy addition to any collection. (Picture book. 4-8)