A CARNIVAL OF ANIMALS

Fleischman (Bandit’s Moon, 1998, etc.) relates six lively, interlocking tall tales involving the animals who live near Barefoot Mountain and the changes brought about by “a no-account little tornado” that “came twirling like a ballerina across the countryside.” A sidehill clinger with two long and two short legs who had its fur plucked out by the storm, a cat who blows itself up like a balloon to scare the nasty dog next door, and a rooster who eats so many fireflies it lights up like a lamp are among the curious characters to inhabit this nonsense world. A chapter book for those who are ready to move up from the beginning-to-read level, this can also be read aloud to a younger audience. Hafner’s (Lucille’s Snowsuit, p. 1119) watercolor, colored-pencil, and pen-and-ink illustrations perfectly suit the tales. Full-page pictures introduce each story while numerous small-scale sketches add humor throughout. While not as rollicking as the author’s McBroom stories, these will tickle the fancy of many and could serve as an introduction to Fleischman’s masterful tall-tale telling. (Fiction. 7-9)