Old Cricket

Old Cricket didn't get to be a ripe old age "by being a dumb bug." No, sir. When his wife asks him to ready their roof for the winter, he fakes a knee injury to weasel out of it. When she sends him off to Doc Hopper, he hobbles out of the house "with a creak-creak-creak in case his missus was watching." On his way, he meets up with his cousin Katydid, who needs help with some berry-picking. He fakes yet another ailment--a crick in his neck--and wobbles off "with a creak-creak-creak, and a crick-crick-crick, in case Katydid was watching." All (meaning Old Cricket's nap) would have gone according to plan, surely, if the bug didn't encounter Old Crow, a bird who didn't get to be a ripe old age "by being a birdbrain." Old Crow wants to eat Old Cricket, and by the time our leggy anti-hero escapes the crow's clutches, the conniving cricket has developed some very real ailments. The team behind the wonderful Sailor Moo: Cow at Sea succeeds again in creating a delightfully clever read-aloud with plenty of rhythm, repetition, and winning wordplay. Ponder Goembel's skillful, larger-than-life illustrations (my, what hairy legs the crickets have!) suit the good-natured fable to a T. (Ages 4 to 8) --Karin Snelson