Raccoon Tune
PreSchool-Grade 2-Short rhyming lines tell of a family of raccoons making a nocturnal raid on suburban garbage cans. They accidentally roll one into a stream and when they fish it out, it is filled with trout. Shaw's lively lines, all written from the animals' point of view, add to the humor of the simple story. Such phrases as "Ash cans./Trash cans./How we love to crash cans,/Mash and smash and bash cans" beg to be read aloud. Playful illustrations expand the lighthearted mood of the story. Fine's use of blues, greens, and light makes nighttime scenes almost as bright as the white of the raccoons' markings, and such objects as the metal trash cans shine with reflected moonlight. These exuberant creatures dance across the road toward their goal, team up to attack closed cans, and finally slump in sleepy satiation after feasting on fish. This story will combine well with Jim Arnosky's Raccoon on His Own (Putnam, 2001) and Jane Thayer's Clever Raccoon (Morrow, 1981; o.p.), or nocturnal nature adventures such as Jane Yolen's Owl Moon (Philomel, 1987).Louise L. Sherman, formerly at Anna C. Scott School, Leonia, NJCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.