BEVERLY BILLINGSLY CAN’T CATCH

Tired of being the last picked to play softball, Beverly and her friend Oliver—who might know how to crack the books, but never hear that sound when they swing the bat—decide to study up on the game to get better. Their friendly librarian—looking like an inspired, demented pileated woodpecker as depicted by Stadler, with his trademark chunky black outlining—suggests they also try some practice. So happens, the librarian is a softball coach, and she gives Beverly and Oliver some valuable advice: “Mrs. Del Rubio drew a face on the ball. ‘This is Wallace . . . and he can’t stand to touch the ground.’ ” There are also the classics, like “keep you eye on the ball,” but the point that sweetly seeps home is that unless you’re willing to put in the hours, you’ll be stuck in softball Siberia: “Beverly was stranded out in right field. Oliver was standing somewhere that didn’t even have a name.” No more. (Picture book. 3-6)