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TERRIBLE TERESA by Mittie Cuetara

TERRIBLE TERESA

and Other Very Short Stories

by Mittie Cuetara & illustrated by Mittie Cuetara

Pub Date: Sept. 1st, 1997
ISBN: 0-525-45768-2
Publisher: Dutton

A preschool short-story collection is an unlikely concept, but newcomer Cuetara comes up with some classic two-page, four- frame tales. There's Fred, who hates to go to bed, ``hides out in the shed/and stays awake instead,'' and Terrible Teresa (``Did you pull the kitty's tail?/You must go to baby jail!''—a playpen). Each rhyme is illustrated with four gregarious scenes, borrowing energy from comic-book layouts but maintaining the look of a picture book. The stories are independent, but all feature the antics of various kids and animals that populate most readers' worlds. Although the book is aimed at preschoolers, first-graders and other emerging readers will get a kick out of using their new skills to unravel the rhymes of these silly tales. (Picture book. 3-7)