SALLY AND DAVE

Sliding along on a slick of sibilants, this episode pairs “sleek, slim and simply stunning” Sally, “sensational at sports,” with sloppy neighbor Dave, who spends his time “sleeping sideways in his own slime.” But Sally’s spiteful sneers suddenly change to shrieks when a predatory sparrow swoops down, and then to suggestive smiles when the slovenly male saves her. Illustrated with simply drawn cartoons featuring blotchy, peanut-shaped blobs with human clothes and eyes on stalks, this spectacularly sexist story may briefly amuse sound-struck fans of the likes of Margaret Atwood’s Bashful Bob and Doleful Dorinda (2004), but as a gooey romance it won’t slide off the shelves. Better to read Susan Pearson’s Slugs in Love (2006), illustrated by Kevin O’Malley. (Picture book. 6-8)