Rosey Stink Badger

Gr 1-3–Willow West Wind is housesitting for her vacationing grandmother, Mother Nature. Quiet Woods differs from Willow’s New York home but is not all that quiet. Birds sing in rhymes (that Willow finishes for them) and Theo the old mouse reminds Willow of a long to-do list. When a haughty Queen Bee decides to take over the hen house, not only are the chickens upset but so is Mrs. Hedgehog, the cook, who uses eggs every day. To prove herself, Willow does what her grandmother would: she sets out to get help from the dreaded stink badger. Instead of a fierce foe, Willow finds a friend in Rosey, the granddaughter of the grouch. Rosey, a badger with “brown eyes and long brown lashes,” helps Willow resolve the “bad bee” issue. Rosey has just the right material to lure the Queen from the hen house: a new, rather fancy abode complete with royal jelly. Gentle illustrations appear throughout the mild story to portray the anthropomorphized animals and Willow, a white human girl. The mild story is predictable and sweet, perhaps best as a read-aloud for younger children.