Balancing Act

PreS-K--This deceptively simple and creative book is loaded with fun. Two adorable mice create a teeter-totter using a stick balanced on a rock. A salamander joins one side, creating an imbalance, but then another one of equal weight joins the other mouse, and all is in order--until it happens again with a frog and a bird. Readers might be fooled into thinking that this is just a concept book, but Walsh gives them so much more, including a twist in the ending. Observant children will want to converse about animal and color identification, as well as why the actions and reactions of the animals are creating balances/imbalances on the teeter-totter. The delightful illustrations were done using cut-paper collage and then splattered with acrylic paints. A rock at the middle of the teeter-totter is cleverly placed in the gutter, creating eye-catching spreads with lots of white space and spare text. This book is full of wonder and can be used at storytime or one-on-one.--Anne Beier, Hendrick Hudson Free Library, Montrose, NY

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

With characteristic simplicity and charm, Stoll (Mouse Shapes) introduces two mice who fashion a teeter-totter by balancing a tree branch on a rock. Poised on each end--and playfully standing on one foot--the friends are in perfect equilibrium (Ta-da!), until a salamander climbs on. Another salamander on the opposite end solves the problem: Perfect. Balance again. But the scenario repeats as a pair of frogs leap onto the branch; a large speckled bird then flies in and dramatically upsets everything once again. Whoops! Thats not going to work! reads the text as the bird comically squashes several of the players. Thinking fast, the smaller creatures reassemble on the other side of the branch, offsetting the weight of the bird. When too many balancers snap the seesaw in two, the others wander off, but the mice rebuild and begin teeter-tottering all over again. Walshs familiar cut-paper critters pop from the white background. Even the minimalist text of this cumulative tale often shifts in and out of balance with the action while sending an upbeat message about ingenuity and cooperation. Ages 26. (Sept.) Copyright 2010 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.