SPRINKLES TO THE RESCUE

A giant pink pastry finds a new job in this picture book by Traver.

Sprinkles is a frosted donut living above Dan’s Donuts. As she watches police officers, firefighters, and ambulance drivers come in to order confections, she wonders if she could do what they do: “Rescue workers came in all shapes, colors, and sizes. Maybe she could be one, too.” She gets accepted to the Rescue Academy, hugs Dan the donut maker goodbye, and races off to start her training—but learning to help people is much harder than Sprinkles expected, and she starts to think she should give up. Then a storm sweeps over, breaking a dam and flooding the town. Initially, she’s unsure how to help, but when she spots someone drowning, she throws herself in, using her donut body as a life preserver to rescue townsfolk. The ending, however, is somewhat unclear: The text says “Sprinkles took to her new job like a donut to coffee,” but the illustration shows her napping in grass by the shore. That aside, it’s satisfying to see Sprinkles follow her dream and find her own unique way of helping. Goswami’s watercolor illustrations manage to show both a sense of peril in the flooded town and a wide range of expressions on Sprinkles’ donut face.

A sweet story about discovering one’s talent, despite a confusing conclusion.