WE HAVE A PLAYDATE

Four quirky animal friends develop their social-emotional skills over the course of four chapters.

In “The Slide,” Tuna (apparently a land-walking narwhal), Noodle (a lime-green, baseball cap–wearing snake), and Margo (a pink duck) reckon with Ralph, a bear who is unwilling to leave the spot at the top of the slide and let others have a turn. In “The Swings,” the now-amicable quartet finds a way to help Noodle enjoy the swingset in a traditional way, and the others learn a new way to appreciate the swingset. In “The Monkey Bars,” Margo is distraught to find that their secret hideout has been destroyed by the very robot they built in the first chapter to thwart Ralph (it immediately went amok), and their friends build them a new and quite magnificent den. In “The Seesaw,” the quartet learns how to balance their individual needs and play safely together. All characters use they/them pronouns and remain genderless throughout. The characters aren’t as unwaveringly sweet as many of their counterparts in similar titles, and their messy, brash earnestness charms. Slapstick humor and light mayhem abound, although unfortunately a couple of jokes at Noodle’s expense are tinged with ableism. Bright, cheerful colors, uncomplicated backgrounds and paneling, and large, simple facial expressions make this a strong graphic novel for young independent readers.

Silly fun.