PreS-Gr 1 After their steamship en route to Boston is wrecked in a storm, a troupe of circus animals escapes bad treatment and disaster, finding its way to an island off the coast of Maine. The 1800s residents are surprised to find zebras eating their gardens and alligators lounging on woodpiles. Sympathies change when a tiger saves a toddler from a blazing shed. When a messenger announces that the cruel circus owner is returning to claim his menagerie, the citizens assist the animals in disguises and camouflage that confound him, leaving the friends to a peaceful coexistence. Van Dusen's rhymed text keeps a rollicking beat. His illustrations burst with color and energy and utilize perspective and texture to add drama and humor. Period details create a counterpoint with elements like a gorilla in a lifeboat. The spread of the animals in "hiding" is pure genius. The book honors the real circus animals that inspired this story. Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA

Van Dusen, illustrator of Kate DiCamillo's Mercy Watson books, uses an actual 1836 shipwreck as the seed for this charming and humorous picture book about the fate of 15 circus creatures aboard a ship that hits a rock and sinks. The menagerie swims to an island, coexisting happily with the residents until the villainous circus owner appears to reclaim them. In an ingenious hide-and-find spread, the camouflaged animals elude the villain, who exits in a huff. The rhyming text provides the structure for the story; however, the vividly colored, meticulously drawn, cartoon-style illustrations articulate the story so well that they could practically stand on their own. Interesting perspectives and nuanced facial expressions clearly convey the drama of the story and emotions of the creatures, while panoramic views beautifully portray the steep coastal village. The final page features a brief author's note about the shipwreck that was the genesis for the story.

Van Dusen's rhyming text takes inspiration from an 1836 shipwreck, but fanciful fun, not tragedy, awaits readers here. The 15 animals aboard The Royal Star swim to an island off Maine after the ship runs aground and the circus's owner, Mr. Paine, abandons them. At first they shock villagers and run mischievously amok. A fire in a farm shed—with little Emma Rose Abbott inside!—engenders a dramatic rescue by the tiger, whose skill in leaping through flames comes into play. Amusingly, animals and villagers collude to thwart Mr. Paine's attempt to reclaim his menagerie. The verse is sprightly, but the pictures are the true stunners. Bright, lampooning gouaches (familiar from the Mercy Watson series) and dizzying perspective perfectly suit this picaresque tale. The reprehensible Mr. Paine is an apoplectic giant striding into the placid village at sunset. Huge, leaping flames dramatize the tiger's riveting heroics. Children will pore over panoramic spreads that invite them to find each of the 15 animals and celebrate a denouement that serves up Mr. Paine's just deserts. Splendid! (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)

The tiny kernel of a true story--a circus ship disaster--expands and transforms into a rollicking tale in verse. Van Dusen's story ends up a hilarious romp complete with a villainous circus owner, a courageous fire-leaping tiger, and clever animals camouflaged as humans. The super-saturated gouache paintings are characterized by perspective changes and filled with the kinds of details kids will pore over.