STINK

Judy Moody’s little brother Stink, a.k.a. James, finally gets his turn. He uses it to obsess about his height—especially after he loses a quarter of an inch between morning and night (as does everyone, he later learns). He also records unfortunate incidents with hair-gel dye, the class newt and a sink drain, and an all-too-shrinkable wig intended to kick his report on James Madison, the shortest President and so, not coincidentally, his favorite, up a notch. Presented in large type on small pages, enhanced with plenty of Reynolds’s black-and-white ink-and-wash drawings, plus comics contributed by Stink himself, and ending on a triumphant note, this makes fine fare for fledgling chapter-book readers. Stink definitely measures up to his memorable sister. (Fiction. 8-10)