SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE BEASTRO

Perfect for pre- or post-school lunch reading, this hilariously urbane collaboration offers a decidedly unappetizing dining experience: leading off with “sloths and slugs / Sautéed in oil with crunchy bugs,” finishing with “Bat-wing pudding, grub-chip ice, / Leech compote topped with lice,” and offering in between such delights as Roach Flambé, Pest-o Baguettes—and a former diner who has complained just a bit too vociferously to hulking Charles the Chef. Reflecting the text’s perfectly tuned mix of sophistication and silliness, the Zalbens place a cast of nonhuman diners and wait-staff made from torn paper and found materials against dim photos of an elegant old New Orleans eatery. It’s all just so grand, and readers who’ve enjoyed Stephanie Calmenson’s Dinner at the Panda Palace, illustrated by Nadine Bernard Westcott (1995), or the occasional Saturday Night at Hodge’s Café, by Tim Egan (1994), will be lining up for reservations. (Picture book. 7-9)