THE SHEEP FAIRY

This tale of an ordinary sheep with a soaring secret dream earns top marks for humor and child appeal. Though seemingly content with the sheeply pleasures of eating grass, eating grass, sleeping, and eating grass, Wendy Woolcoat confesses to a fairy that she dreams of “flying through the moonlit sky.” That night, Wendy sprouts a pair of wings and a starry crown; after a bit of practice, she not only takes an exhilarating flight over land and sea, but sends a marauding wolf skittering away, yelping for its mommy. Sim sends his blocky aeronaut soaring exuberantly over patchwork, painted landscapes, through night skies aglitter with stars and spacecraft. Next morning, the wings may be gone, but the crown remains. Destined to be a champion read-aloud, and a surefire way to give young listeners wings of their own. (Picture book. 5-7)