It’s Sloth’s fifth birthday, and all the animals pitch in to plan the party of the year. But slow-poke Sloth is so fashionably late that the other party animals, who revel throughout the year while waiting for their friend, tire just before Sloth finally arrives: “right place, right day, wrong year.” Sloth has missed all the fun, and has also grown out of his birthday present, a pair of carefully stitched shoes. This humorous tale trips off the tongue, its rhyming stanzas bordering more on fun than forced, with poetic sounds and alliteration. The friendly and unusual cast of characters—ranging from potteroos to pangolins—are whimsically depicted in revelry—from a tuxedo-clad snake to a party-pooping fruit bat in pajamas. Readers are bound to enjoy the amusing, offbeat party preparations. (Picture book. 3-6)
