Squirrel's World (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Squirrel's World Hope Morrison Moser, Lisa Squirrel's World; illus. by Valeri Gorbachev. Candlewick, 2007 [48p] ISBN 978-0-7636-2929-8$14.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 1-2 This animal-themed easy reader features the interactions between hyperactive Squirrel and his forest neighbors Mouse, Turtle, and Rabbit. In the first chapter, [End Page 102] Squirrel somewhat overzealously helps Mouse gather food for the winter (apples crash down onto poor little Mouse as Squirrel jumps on the tree branch); in the second, high-voltage Squirrel plays games with the sleepy, immobile Turtle. In the third chapter, Squirrel offers assistance to Rabbit, who is attempting to get a lily pad from the lake before it rains. In the final chapter, Squirrel runs about saying good night to all of his friends introduced in the previous chapters. To say that Squirrel has a lot of energy is putting it lightly; he evinces a believable squirrel-like frenzy with his constant motion and leaning towards repetition ("Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! . . . I am going to whack, whack, whack that leaf!"). While the three patient friends provide Squirrel with affectionate foils. Gorbachev's loosely hatched linework provides appealing informal texture to the forest clan, and his illustrations offer plenty of decoding clues for novices. Though a real-life encounter with Squirrel would doubtless be exhausting (and reading his adventures aloud will require the mustering of considerable energy to do him justice), early independent readers will revel in the abundant repetition and will certainly have "Oh boy" mastered by book's end. Copyright © 2007 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois