LIZARD WALINSKY
by Roberta Baker & illustrated by Debbie Tilley
As they did in No Ordinary Olive (2002), the Baker and Tilley team introduce another engaging heroine in this amusing affirmation of friendship. Elizabeth Ann Walinsky, a.k.a. Lizard, definitely prefers dinosaurs to dolls. Lizard’s playmates just don’t share her obsession with giant reptiles, leaving her “sad and alone.” At T-ball practice, she discovers arachnid aficionado Simon, a.k.a. Spider. Instant best friends, the reptile-loving duo build a terrarium for their model dinosaurs, scour the outfield for Pteranodon eggs, and feast on toasted marshmallows and gummy worms. But when summer ends, Lizard and Spider are sent to different schools and a desolate Lizard faces first grade on her own—until she meets Samantha, a.k.a. Salamander. Whimsical reptilian images reinforce the prehistoric theme; detailed backgrounds teeming with activity add humor and invite close examination. The expressionistic watercolor-and-ink illustrations, plus the dinosaur subtext, transform a somewhat ordinary story into a lively celebration of special friends. (Picture book. 3-7)