THE NOISY FOXES

Three urban-dwelling foxes head to the countryside in search of a little quiet.

The trio lives in the big city, where it is all “rumble, rumble, chitter, chatter,” to which the foxes add their “hopping and bopping...banging and clanging.” Enough. “Wouldn’t it be nice to be quiet sometimes?” asks Fox Number One. Once in the country, they enter Goldilocks mode: the owl’s home is too high, the mole’s is too dark, the frog’s is too wet, and the badger’s is too quiet—a shrewd little twist that should make readers think. As the three wander through the youthful, color-crazy landscapes, they pull out their various noisemakers (“The noisy foxes were tired of being quiet”) and start up a woodland stomp. A passing, quiet-loving mouse shows the foxes the ideal place for them to find a home. Shifting into Wizard of Oz mode, they find themselves right back in their urban digs. Home is where the noise is. Clearly the storyline doesn’t turn any new turf, but Husband’s artwork is a showstopper. Some pages have as many as five panels, some are double-page spreads, so the flow is both nimble and steady. The characters have both eyes on one side of their heads, like flatfish, which somehow makes them extremely sympathetic; and the color is as rich and varied as a full deployment of the largest box of crayons.

Familiar ground, with an effulgent new look.