ZINNIA AND DOT

Two feuding hens lose all but one egg to a weasel who sneaks in while they're busy squabbling. Now they really have something to fight about: Whose is the egg that's left? With poor grace, Dot and Zinnia squeeze together into one nest, brooding and maintaining ``an icy silence.'' Only after the weasel tries to eat them too, and they fight him off together, do they relax their antagonism and share their triumph—as well as the chick that hatches immediately thereafter (``He's gorgeous!...his feet look just like yours''). Only the subtly balanced colors (old straw, Plymouth Rock gray, Rhode Island red) are muted here; the brisk narrative and the vigorous pen strokes delineating the adamant hens are vibrant with action. A good choice to share with a group. (Picture book. 3-8)