HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, DOLORES

Samuels’s imp Dolores returns, this time with a problem on her hands, or rather with her hands: She can’t keep her mitts off her older sister Faye’s things. Here, it’s a singing frog on a necklace, a necklace that looks like it might be a Valentine’s gift of Faye’s. Certainly, Dolores is not about to let this gem slip away without some quality time. And, certainly, this will get Dolores into a pickle that she can’t scoot from without getting caught. But because Dolores is so transparent in her mischief—and pays for it in an unfolding of minor crises—her act of “borrowing” won’t turn to bite her. It may even pay a dividend. (Not that readers should follow her example; of course not.) As is the case with the other Dolores books, this one is full of visual activity and funny asides, like the grumpy-looking teddy bear sporting a “Hands Off!” sign on Faye’s dresser and the many comic expressions on Dolores’s cat Duncan’s face. (Picture book. 4-8)