WARTHOGS IN THE KITCHEN

A slap-happy counting book in which first one warthog then gradually more whip up a batch of singular cupcakes. The book proceeds as a carefree rhyme—“One little cook thinks/he’ll cook today./Two clean hooves./All the germs washed away.” Additional warthogs join in the preparation: Butter is churned to a froth, the flour is whirled into blizzards, the eggs hit the floor, a few pickles are added, all from numbers one through ten. The concoction is baked and consumed with relish, although it will be clear to readers that perhaps only a warthog would be so pleased with the results (the cupcakes include five scoops of butter and pickles). Cole’s great toothy warthogs and manic action make for an ideal mix of comedy and energy, all the way to the end, when there are no cupcakes left (it’s nice to see zero make an appearance in a counting book, as do two recipes) and the warthogs collapse from their efforts. (Picture book. 4-9)