FISH FRY TONIGHT

In lilting verse, Koller explains how Mouse starts a contented day of fishing, ""gazing, at ripples and dapples that giggled and babbled. While dozily drowsing, she dangled a hook."" Suddenly, Mouse finds herself bravely landing a fish as big as she is; overwhelmed by its size, she telephones friend Squirrel, encouraging him to bring friends to share it. Merry verse in tow, the tale turns cumulative; in the end, Mouse has to send out for pizza (""with lots of anchovies"") to serve the crowd that shows up for what now looks like a small fish. The lighthearted fun is nicely reflected in O'Neill's cheery broken-line and watercolor illustrations. A fine read-alone, but the humor and catchy rhymes and rhythms especially recommend this for reading aloud.