What We're Reading: Brenda

Dinosaurs Love Underpants by Claire Freedman and Ben Cort and Hot Rod Hamster by Cynthia Lord with Illustrations by Derek Anderson

Both of these books feature a simple plot but have wonderful illustrations and are very entertaining!

Dinosaurs Love Underpants is a cute book that attempts to explain why the dinosaurs went extinct. Basically, caveman thought up underpants and when the dinosaurs saw them they had to have them too! This caused a "Mighty Underpants War" and the end result was the demise of the dinosaurs. The plot is very light but the book rhymes well and is funny. The pictures of dinosaurs wearing brightly colored underpants are fabulous and will make you laugh out loud. I loved all of the vibrant colors in this book - the illustrations definitely make the book! This is a follow-up to "Aliens Love Underpants" and I liked this book enough to want to check out the first one!

In Hot Rod Hamster a tiny hamster goes to the junkyard to build himself a race car to compete in the big race. With the help of a bulldog and a couple of mice he picks out the body, the wheels, and the paint job. Then it's off to the race and you can guess what happens next! The book is a mix of energetic, catchy rhymes and speech balloons. The line "Which would you choose?" is used throughout and helps to draw children into the story and make it more interactive. The best part of the book is the illustrations! They are so bold and colorful and full of little details. The more time you spend looking at them the more you will see! The illustrator has even used a metallic shine on the cover to really give it the appearance of a hot rod! A very humorous and entertaining read!