Stanley the Builder

PreS-Gr 1—With some help from his friend Charlie, Stanley the hamster builds a house for his friend Myrtle. Children follow him as he clears the land, digs and pours the foundation, and then builds and paints the house. Myrtle is super pleased with her new home. As a garage owner, Stanley is confronted with a flat tire, Charlie's overheating radiator, an empty gas tank, and Myrtle's car in need of a tow, and he fixes everything with a smile. Both books end with Stanley going home to have dinner and a bath. Each vehicle, be it car or big machine, is identified by its color—green crane, purple car, yellow digger, blue car, etc. Bee's uncluttered and boldly colored illustrations feature thick black outlines and plenty of white space, making everything easy to see. This layout perfectly suits the one or two lines of text (or occasionally no text) found on each page. These simple books are great choices for younger kids to start looking at jobs, identifying colors, and hanging out with Stanley and his mice friends. For slightly older children, these titles could easily serve as early readers.—Catherine Callegari, Gay-Kimball Library, Troy, NH