Once Upon a Slime

K-Gr 2—This fractured fairy tale is based on characters from many traditional stories that older children will be familiar with, such as "Three Bears," "Three Little Pigs," "Little Red Riding Hood," and "Rapunzel." Well-known characters try to sleuth out clues as to who is dumping chartreuse green slime on their noggins. Most of the vernacular is presented with well-intentioned humor, despite the fact that Granny attempts to pick a fight with Wolf ("I should potch you right in the schnozzle, Wolfie."). The artwork is stronger than the plot. Cotterill brings a cartoonlike quality to the expressions on the animals' faces. Slapstick events are drawn using ink with digital coloring techniques. Endpapers allow the reader to trace a path from Prince Charming and Snow White-Charming's castle all the way to Pied Piper's Music School and Exterminator Inc., setting the mood for the story to come. Rather than explore an important lesson "about honesty, dignity, and honor," in the end, Frog succeeds in demonstrating a tale of revenge.