Animal House

Busy, brightly hued art and bouncy verse record the efforts of a variety of creatures to design a dream house. The merriment begins when a group of children gather a menagerie of stuffed animals and announce, ""Here we have some architects/ with talent, brains, and fur./ Let's ask them to help us plan/ the house we'd all prefer."" Springing to life, 10 critters take turns. A giraffe peers out of a conveniently high window, just below a patterned rug (""PLEASE don't paint the ceilings white./ That's such an awful bore./ Put a fancy rug up there!/ Why waste it on the floor?""). A cross-section view of a rabbit warren shows one resident dyeing eggs as three others play a board game of ""Chutes and Burrows""; the title of a book nearby reads ""Demand Royalties from Magicians"" (on its cover, a rabbit's fist sticks up from a magician's hat, in a power-to-the-people salute). In a grand finale, a double gatefold opens to disclose live and stuffed animals (and children) in a sprawling tree house that incorporates elements from all the species' wish lists. This breezy volume will encourage aspiring architects' imaginations to soar beyond four walls and a roof. Ages 4-8. (Sept.)