Squeak Seeks!: Ready-to-Read Level 1

PreS-Gr 1–Paul and Henrietta Stickland’s Dinosaur Roar! joins a long list of celebrated picture books that have been branded and expanded into countless spin-offs. In this offering for emerging readers, Squeak, a tiny Compsognathus, is “going on an adventure in the forest…What will Squeak find?” Readers will not find a plot, and “adventure” proves too strong a word for Squeak’s meandering jaunt. There is no narrative climax when Squeak is sucked into the jaws of a hungry Diplodocus, but the next page inexplicably finds her back on the forest floor, unharmed and looking for “more dinosaur friends.” Large print and short text (each page has fewer than 10 words) will lure new readers, but words like through and straight may be difficult for this audience to decode. Computer-generated 3D illustrations are muted, both in personality and in their earth-toned palette, with none of the flair of the Sticklands’s original expressive watercolors. Despite its shortcomings, the dinosaur theme and name recognition of the series will undoubtedly lead to high circulation.