Though its cover is emblazoned with Written by MARIA from Sesame Street, there's nary a Muppet to be found inside Manzano's picture-book debut. Instead, readers will find a fanciful, urban tall tale about a Latino family's expedition from the Bronx to the beach, narrated by six-year-old Iris. The dog, extended family, and neighbors from the tri-state area all come along, too, toting everything from a multicourse banquet and a piano to a traveling game of dominoes. A series of obstacles (engine trouble, a navigational mishap, a beach marked No Dogs Allowed) intensify the participants' appreciation for the fleeting fun in the sun they finally enjoy. Muth, illustrator of Old Turtle and the Broken Truth (2003) and other books, captures the silliness to perfection, buoying up Manzano's overlong text with his distinctive, spidery line-and-watercolor images. The humor of a simple outing that balloons into a fiesta may resonate most strongly with families for whom small and family gathering are contradictions in terms, but the anything-goes sensibility has universal appeal.

Using language too sophisticated for a seven-year-old, Iris describes the day when she and her Bronx-based family, neighbors, and dog nearly didn't get to enjoy a day at the lake because of a no-dogs sign. The plot is a red herring: the book's main pleasure is its depiction of a joyful Puerto Rican community. Muth's busy watercolors somehow keep up with the frantic cast.

Sesame Street's "Maria" debuts with this effervescent tale of an extended Bronx family heading for the beach. "Only take what you know you'll really need to go on a picnic," says Papi. Over her big sister Shorty's objections, young Iris takes El Exigente, the dog—only to encounter a sign (see title) that confines him to the parking lot. So Papi proposes that everyone take turns minding him, "until we figure out what to do." Or, as it happens, until darkness falls, and all head sleepily homeward. Muth's sand-tinted scenes bustle with vivacious, expressively posed figures, as Iris's Mami (who bears a strong resemblance to the author) whips up enough food for an army while neighbors and relatives gather from, as Iris puts it, "the tri-state area," then head off in a convoy of heavily loaded cars to a lake (though it looks more like the ocean) in "Enchanted State Park." Children will happily hitch a ride, laugh at the exaggerated but believable details and misadventures, and listen to the quiet chords of community and cooperation that underlie Iris's sunny account. (Picture book. 6-8)

K-Gr 3-Everything is a production for Iris's extended Puerto Rican family and several of their neighbors. Readers know this almost immediately as the girl describes their convoluted trek from a Bronx neighborhood to the "Enchanted State Park." Everyone brings as much as he or she can carry, from a deli counter to a copy of War and Peace. When they finally arrive, Iris discovers that her dog, El Exigente, is not allowed in the park and each person takes a turn dog-sitting him in the parking lot until the busy day ends. Muth's lively watercolor illustrations do much for this overwritten and too-earnest story. They imbue the characters with personality and extend the humor of the tale. One spread shows a seemingly endless line of colorful, heavily packed cars stretching from end to end. When the travelers get lost, the accompanying picture shows their cars on a maze of intersecting roads that wind around to spell out "oops." The illustrations take varying perspectives, from ground-level shots to aerial angles. They effectively portray the numerous characters, bringing individuals to the foreground as if being viewed through a camera. The expressive artwork makes this mediocre story seem to be much more than it actually is.-Jane Marino, Bronxville Public Library, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.