When her penguin figure-skating partner plunges under the ice, Flora (Flora and the Flamingo) is put out. The penguin produces a fish for her, but Flora, miffed, throws the fish back...then thinks of a creative way to make amends. Dynamic flaps help set a rhythmic pace in this wordless story; a limited palette of pale blue, yellow, and the white of the page befits the wintry scene.

PreS-K Idle's bold and balletic Flora is back in another wordless adventure, this time infused with icy blue, to skate with a penguin. The simple story is told entirely in picturesfeaturing only a few colors on a white backgroundthat are eloquent and irresistible. As in Flora and the Flamingo (Chronicle, 2013), small page flaps advance the story and establish the relationship between the two well-defined characters. There a simple conflict and a satisfying resolution, made more dramatic with a glorious gatefold. Preschoolers will enjoy narrating the action while they flip through the pages of this beautiful book. Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY

This follow-up to the Caldecott Honor Book Flora and the Flamingo (2013) finds Flora in a chillier climate. In this wordless offering, Flora is taking up ice-skating, and her new friend is a penguin. From the moment that she sees his beak peeking up through the ice, she's enchanted. Together, they take off, sliding and gliding along the ice. But when the penguin heads back under the ice to catch a fish, Flora feels abandoned and won't even accept the fishy gift she's offered. That leads to hard feelings, until Flora comes up with a way to set things right. Once again, Idle uses rounded shapes and a soft palette to bring her characters to life d lively they are. This rings with the real emotion of friendship found, lost, and found again. The selection of flaps and the trifold pages add an extra bit of interest to a book that's already a charmer. Though not so different from the previous title, like dancing and skating, birds and girls, these two books work in tandem.