ON THE WAY HOME

Coming back with Grandpa from a pre-dinner walk, a child gets some unexpected help working up an appetite.

First it’s a monkey swinging in a tree. “Can we do that too?” “Of course!” says the monkey. After a puddle-jumping alligator, a tap-dancing zebra, a tiger on a trampoline, and a weightlifting hippo extend similar invitations, appetite is no longer an issue…but credibility is. “What a wild imagination, sweetie!” says Grandma, upon hearing the tale. But then comes a knock at the door, and in troops a crew of animal dinner guests: “Surprise!” Along with select words in boldface to provide read-aloud guidance, the narrative features lots of sound effects (“SPLISH! SPLASH!”; “BOING! BOING!”) for young audiences to chime in on. They’ll be happy to yell them out when they’re not giggling at the sight of gray-bearded Grandpa gamely swinging by his knees, jumping, splashing, and pumping iron along with his apple-cheeked companion in Vasko’s big, exuberant paintings. Closing, fittingly enough, with a double-page animal rumpus, this high-energy outing offers rousing surprises with nearly every page turn. Both black-mopped child and silver-haired grandparents have pink skin. The book publishes simultaneously in Spanish, with a translation by Luis Amavisca and a title that’s far more suggestive of the interior than the original: Una tarde súper increíble.

Tailor-made for storytimes large or intimate.