A young boy lies on the couch trying to read his book, but a tiger keeps interrupting him by chewing gum, pretending to be a bear, doing karate kicks and riding the boy’s toy train and blowing its whistle. The tiger even lifts up the couch to look underneath for the whistle when he loses it. Solution? Why, read the book to the tiger, of course. Alley’s soft, colorful cartoons embellish the first-person exchanges between the boy and the tiger with humorous expressions and details, producing just the right sense of playfulness. There are plenty of sound effects ready-made for enthusiastic audience participation—CHOMP, Grrrrr, Hiii-YAAAAA, Choo-Choo-Choo—in storytime and repeated readings, while the “turn-the-tables” device will be sure to cause giggles. The choice of an antique typeface (it looks like old-fashioned typewriter letters) seems superfluous; however, any book title with the first word READ is bound to grab attention. And the message? Catch a tiger by the tale! (Picture book. 3-5)
