SQUIRREL ON STAGE

“Cinderella” has never been so squirrelly.

Twitch, a squirrel who lives in the trees near a school, is back for another adventure, this time upon the stage! Visiting his friend Sweetie, the school library’s pet albino rat, one evening, Twitch learns that the students will be staging a theatrical version of “Cinderella.” Sweetie has a certain fondness for this story, because the fairy godmother selects a rat to drive the pumpkin coach. Twitch decides that his friend must see the show and hatches a plan (sort of) for the nearsighted rat to be close enough to enjoy the spectacle. Unsurprisingly, the duo’s adventure doesn’t go by the fairy-tale book, and while Sweetie becomes a little more involved in the onstage antics than he anticipated, Twitch finds a nemesis of sorts in Miss Krause, the school librarian and the play’s director. Readers who know Twitch from his previous stories are in for a side-splitting new adventure, and those unfamiliar will want to seek out his other stories. Alternating chapters between Twitch’s and Sweetie’s points of view allows both characters to develop fully and shine. Sweetie’s vision issues are a good reminder that people (and rats) with different abilities all deserve starring roles. Scribbly, expressive black-and-white illustrations depict a diverse student body. An afterword from all the school’s various classroom pets and a Q&A with the author provide additional insights for book clubs and classroom discussion.

Readers will go nuts (mostly acorns) for this book!