While looking for rocks and feathers for their collections, muskrat Cork and opossum Fuzz stumble upon a nest of ducklings. The babies follow Fuzz until Mama Duck returns and herds him into her nest along with the ducklings. Cork comes to the rescue and gains a feather for his collection. Textured illustrations reaffirm the warmth of this unlikely friendship.

Cork, the short muskrat who collects shiny stones, and Fuzz, the tall possum who collects, well, most things, including feathers, return in a fourth easy reader. Their slightly rivalrous friendship—they spar a bit over the sizes and types of their collections—is further tested when they encounter some "green stones" near a pond. Owing to a feather wrapped in Fuzz's tail, five hatching ducklings bond with the possum, and their returning mother duck "collects" him while hustling her brood back to the nest. After Cork finds a way to liberate Fuzz, the pair runs, flaps and quacks, "collecting laughs all the way home." McCue's charming pictures couple pastoral blues and greens of pond and meadow with wiry and shiny textures for Cork and Fuzz's fur and tails. While plotting is slightly thinner than in previous outings, Chaconas has fun with the friends' confusion as the busy ducklings overrun their nest. A welcome addition to a sweet, funny series. (Easy reader. 5-8)

Gr 1-3-In this fourth installment in the series, Cork (a muskrat) and Fuzz (a possum) are looking for shiny stones to add to their collections. Fuzz wraps a feather (from his feather collection) on his tail and begins sweeping away dirt, hoping to uncover some treasures. As they work their way down to the pond, Cork finds some pretty green stones. While they study them, the "stones" begin to hatch. They are soon surrounded by ducklings, and Mother Duck is not far behind. With the feather in his tail, Fuzz is mistaken for one of her babies and she pushes him into her nest and sits on him. It is up to Cork to find a way to free his friend and, accidentally, he does just that. As the story ends, readers watch the "two best friends, collecting laughs all the way home." These buddies are at their silly, illogical best, charming readers with their friendly competitiveness. This book is targeted at newly independent readers and has appropriately challenging words like "feather" and "whispered." The text flows smoothly and remains entertaining throughout. Delightful pen-and-watercolor illustrations offer plenty of context clues. Teachers will find this title a perfect choice for reading groups.-Mary Hazelton, Elementary Schools in Warren & Waldoboro, ME Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.

The fourth easy-to-read chapter book about Cork, the short muskrat, and Fuzz, the tall possum, once again tells a warm story about best friends who are different and sometimes scrappy, but still like each other and have lots of fun. In this book, the "stones" Fuzz collects hatch into ducklings, and the feather he has causes big mother duck to drag him to her nest. Cork, of course, comes to the rescue. McCue's clear, lovely line-and-watercolor pictures show the mischievous, furry friends sometimes a little tense, but still "collecting laughs all the way home."