TERRIFIC!

Five friends—Turtle, Badger, Anteater, Mandrill, and Owl—want to do something together.

They want to do something “terrific,” as Turtle suggests, but finding an activity they can all enjoy is not easy. They earnestly consider various pursuits—climbing termite mounds, hanging by toes, digging, swimming through reeds, flying—each a pleasure for at least one but not for all. Gilmore’s palette, filled with greens and browns, is subdued and light, and the faces and bodies of her characters fill the page in a way that is lively and disarming. The disparate group is wonderful to look at, with its variety of shapes and colors of fur, feathers, or shell. The mandrill adds both color and gravitas to this elegant assemblage of sub-Saharan animals. The individual eyes and faces are expressive, personable, and somehow hilarious without being caricatured. When Snake comes along, the rock python has its own idea about togetherness, and it’s not a particularly appealing one. “It’s terrific to swallow an animal whole,” Snake whispers, conveying something shiveringly creepy along with the truth that some activities need not be considered at all. Still, the group of five is reminded in that moment, perhaps inadvertently, that eating together is something friends can enjoy (as long as they are not eating one another). Owl’s round belly hints that Snake contributed in some way to the feast.

Pretty terrific, indeed, and visually marvelous.