THERE’S A ZOO IN ROOM 22

Meet an alphabet of classroom pets in Sierra’s (The Dancing Pig, 1999, etc.) collection of quirky, entertaining verses. There’s a moose who doubles as a coat rack, Claude the feline acrobat, and Polly the Parrot, who is sent to the principal for inappropriate language. A class of unflappable children and teachers eagerly adopts each animal. Saltzberg’s cartoon-like illustrations, done in pencil, watercolor, and color pencil, nicely complement the action. The animals and children interact in a variety of settings that include a science fair and several field trips. However, the illustrations do not convey personalities. Facial features vary only slightly and expressions of emotion do not vary at all. In each illustration all characters display the same bland smiles, frowns, or looks of mild surprise. Several of Sierra’s verses suffer from uneven meters that interfere with the flow of the poems, and such tortured rhymes as “carpenter/sharpener” and “not/caught.” There is much to like about this book, some very funny concepts, in fact, but there are other collections of animal poetry that are ultimately more satisfying. (Picture book/poetry. 5-8)