COSMO ZOOMS

Howard (When I Was Five, 1996, etc.) taps into both the sheer pleasure of skateboarding, as well as its condition of near- pandemonium. Cosmo is the odd dog out on the block; all the others have some special talent—howling, frisbee-catching, drooling, to name a few—but Cosmo hasn’t found his niche. Intuitively he seems to understand that his cat friend Pearl’s suggestion, “How about catching mice and then showing them to everyone?” would only confuse things. Cosmo flops down to give the question some thought. “Just before he closed his eyes, a bicycle rolled past. No one was riding it. ‘That’s funny,’ he thought.” Children may be quicker to note that the bicycle is not rolling, nor is a mailbox that seems to go past; Cosmo has inadvertently flopped down on a skateboard that is gaining momentum. Although the initial ride is somewhat frightening, the other dogs are impressed. Howard demonstrates how chance plays a sweet role in life, and, with a few strokes of the brush, makes readers care about Cosmo and his yearning to achieve. (Picture book. 4-8)