HOW TO LOSE A LEMUR

Wild adventure follows when some lemurs take a shine to a slightly wary boy.

The boy is holding an ice cream cone, and the lemur clutches a red flower. Their eyes lock; the lemur’s smile says it all: “[O]nce a lemur takes a liking to you, there is not much that can be done about it.” The boy tries to slip away, even climbing up a tree, but he can’t shake the lemur, who manages to attract a few more. The boy hops on his bike, but he can’t elude the quartet of lemurs following on a bike of their own. In no time, the boy’s being hugged by several new pals who want to play. Still uncomfortable, he hops on a train, takes to the sky in a hot air balloon, jumps in a boat to cross the lake, climbs the highest mountain, and travels through the desert in the scorching heat, on a camel. And on every leg of this odyssey, the lemurs aren’t far behind...though they are hiding. When the boy decides that he has eluded the lemurs, he realizes that he’s far from home and doesn’t know how to get back. That’s where his determined new friends come in. Preston-Gannon’s lemurs are quite adorable. Each two-page spread is beautifully evocative, with basic shapes and shrewd use of white space.

Simple but silly and satisfying. (Picture book. 4-6)