A Porcupine Named Fluffy

March 24, 1986
Should Mr. and Mrs. Porcupine name their baby Lance? Needleroozer? Quillian? Perhaps they should, but they don't. Instead they decide on the unlikely name of Fluffy. Fluffy's name is a source of sorrow to the sharp-quilled youngster, until he meets and befriends a rhinoceros named . . . Hippo! Munsinger's bright, cheery pictures are as whimsical as Lester's delightfully silly text. Together, they create nicely absurd images, such as a scene in which Fluffy and Hippo roll on the ground, laughing so hard that they start to cry. Lester and Munsingerwho have collaborated on other picture bookstell a sweet story with joyful exuberance.

April 1, 1988
K-Gr 2 -Tacky the Penguin is a total nonconformist who lives with a group of formal, proper penguins. But it is Tacky who foils the plans of three critters with "get-rich-quick plans" that threaten the penguins' existence. With his un-penguin-like antics, Tacky puzzles the hunters to such an extent that they're firmly convinced they cannot be in the "land of the pretty penguins." This is a rollicking tale that clearly shows that there are ad vantages to being an individual. Mun singer cheerfully captures the mood of the tale with her whimsical, full-color illustrations that are particularly strong in depicting the hunters' deter mined, then befuddled, expressions and Tacky's madcap antics. This is sure to elicit lots of chuckles from young readers. Bonnie Wheatley, Emma Conn Elementary School, Ra leigh, N.C.

April 25, 1988
This book is must reading for any kidor grown-upwho refuses to follow the pack. Tacky wears a rumpled Hawaiian shirt, frequently stumbles, performs splashy cannonballs and sings songs like, "How Many Toes Does a Fish Have?'' He lives at the North Pole with his companions Goodly, Lovely, Angel, Neatly and Perfect, who clad themselves in decorous bow-ties, walk neatly in a row, perform elegant dives and sing lovely songs like, ``Sunrise on the Iceberg.'' But even without the fancy trappings, Tacky comes into his own when he outsmarts a gang of penguin rustlers. This is off-beat fun that is a natural follow-up to Lester and Munsinger's other dandy offerings, including A Porcupine Named Fluffy and The Wizard, the Fairy, and the Magic Chicken. Ages 4-8.

August 17, 1990
None of the penguins can tolerate Tacky's loud habits--until they scare off a pack of hunters. PW declared that ``this book is must reading for any kid--or grown-up--who refuses to follow the pack.'' Ages 4-8.

March 26, 2001
PreS-Gr 2-Taky the Penguin is noticeably different from his fellow birds. Where they are graceful, elegant, courteous, and adorable, Taky is disheveled, frumpy, clumsy, and exuberant. One would think that this would lead to all sorts of problems, but it doesn't. Instead, while his elegant peers quake behind an ice floe, Tacky exhibits all of his boisterous, strange behavior and scares away some hunters. Sometimes, different is good. First published in English in 1990, this popular character appears in several other Houghton Mifflin titles (e.g., Three Cheers for Taky, 1996, Taky in Trouble, 1998 and most recently Taky and the Emperor, 2000), which have not yet been translated into Spanish. Recommended for public libraries and bookstores. MOB

January 1, 2014
These reissues (downloadable audio versions available on the publisher's website) feature silly stories, winsome illustrations, and palatable morals. Murdley Gurdson's lost shoe sets off a chain reaction of blame in My Fault. Pig Scout Pinkerton's greed gets him more than he bargained for in Me First. Porcupine is an amiable and ridiculous story about embracing oneself.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)