Beaver Is Lost

May 17, 2010
Only four words grace Cooper's (Beach) characteristically understated tale of a beaver whose log ride down the river becomes the first leg of a long urban journey—the log and beaver are soon loaded onto a truck and transported to a city lumberyard. The beaver is always depicted naturalistically, but as it stands atop the log and seems to take in the massive city unfolding before it, there's a hint of realization in its pose that matches the text on the opposite page ("Beaver is lost"). Cooper's dappled watercolors appear in rectangular panels of varying sizes that underscore the heights, depths, and distance the beaver travels. It scurries away from a frisky lumberyard dog, dives beneath an inflatable crocodile in a backyard pool, encounters fellow beavers at the zoo, scampers somewhat comically through pedestrians' legs, and darts after a mouse before eventually swimming "Home" to its dam. Cooper's artwork has a placidity that never allows the city to feel too overwhelming—or frightening. Beaver is always in control and often comes across as curious, making a potentially scary situation an adventure. Ages 3–7.

June 1, 2010
Preschool-G In this wordless picture book, the action begins when a beaver jumps on a log in a river and the log is picked up by a crane, stacked on a truck, and driven to a city. On arrival, the beaver explores the streets, escapes both a big dog and then a crocodile in a zoo, hides in a sewer, and then finally returns to the river, where he swims through the night and reaches home. The finely detailed, watercolor-and-pencil pictures are always true to the small creatures viewpoint, whether he is on the highway watching the skyscrapers whiz by or on the city sidewalk among the gray-clad legs of crowds of giants, and young children will easily recognize their own perspective. Drawn by the exciting adventure of leaving home, getting lost, and returning safely, kids will enjoy poring over the busy scenes and pointing out what they notice.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)