Horowitz gives an ancient cautionary fable a modern urban setting, jazzed up with a toothy, die-cut open mouth on the cover. Two little birds, sitting on a curb snacking from a can of gourmet worms, laugh off a warning that a tiger is coming. Then the bus pulls up, and off steps a smiling tiger with sinister mustachios, who dances and sings as his smile grows wider and wider, until, “Well, what do you know? / You just can’t trust a tiger!” Placing cut-paper figures against bright monochrome backgrounds, Horowitz keeps the visuals as simple as the plot—but adds a twist at the end by allowing the birds not only to survive, but to triumph thanks to a special friend: “never trust a tiger’s smile . . . unless you know a crocodile!” The author recommends that this be read in a “New York accent,” but its point will be evident to most readers without the hint. (Picture book/folktale. 5-8)
