OVER THE MOON

Vail (Daring to be Abigail, 1996, etc.) reimagines a nursery rhyme as a Broadway production headed for disaster; running concurrent with the lines of the rhyme is the exasperated exchanges between noted director, Hiram “Hi” Diddle Diddle, and his uncooperative cow. “Over the moon! You get it? Or the whole nursery rhyme is ruined.” But the cow keeps goofing up. She leaps under, next to, and finally right through the glowing orb (which is only a paper moon in this production). Finally the bovine star gets it right, but after successfully flying over the moon she crash lands on her worried director, which sets the little dog giggling. When the dish and the spoon cut out for a bite to eat, the rest of the crew (including the cool blue fiddling cat) decide to take a break, too. Although young readers might not get all the theatrical posturing and angst, Nash’s funny illustrations, with the hand-lettered dialogue appearing in conversation balloons, will elicit plenty of smiles, making Vail’s first picture book a giddy success. (Picture book. 3-7)