Cleary (To Root, to Toot, to Parachute: What Is a Verb?, 2001, etc.) details the ins and outs of prepositions in this fourth entry in his Words Are Categorical series. The rhyming grammar lesson is illustrated this time by newcomer Gable with cartoon-style cats in creative color combinations demonstrating the prepositions, which are printed in bright colors for additional emphasis. The reader sees cats in bed, beside the chair, and in many other locations, including a raft heading toward Mississippi, with more cats going “through the yard of Chris, the hippie.” Cleary also dismisses the outdated rule banning sentences ending in prepositions with a clever rhyme: “Ever since the olden days, there’s been a silly myth / That prepositions aren’t correct to end a sentence with.” His humorous text does a solid but entertaining job of introducing different types of prepositions and formulating a workable definition. Although not as visually appealing as Ruth Heller’s similar series on the parts of speech, this work will be used by teachers in the elementary-school classroom, especially in schools where the others in the series are popular. (Nonfiction. 7-9)
