Let's Go for a Drive! (An Elephant and Piggie Book)
Just in case your collection needed a little more gray and pink, here comes the latest mini drama of Gerald the elephant and Piggie the pig. “Piggie!” shouts Gerald. “I have a great idea! Let’s go for a drive!” Piggie’s down with that idea, and so begins a pattern. First, Gerald thinks of something they’ll need: “First, we need a map.” Second, Piggie runs to get the item. Third, Gerald speaks to the reader about why the idea was such a darned good one. And, fourth, Piggie returns, and the friends freak out with excitement: “Map! Map! Mappy-map-map!” The laugh factor here will depend on readers’ tolerance for repetition. Still, though, even as we approach 20 books in the series, it’s hard to imagine getting sick of these two simply yet expertly drafted goofballs. The map, designed with scraps of an actual map, adds a new visual interest, and the ending, as always, is perfect. But you were going to buy this anyway, right? Preschool-Grade 2. --Daniel Kraus