First There Was Frances

First came Frances, who lives alone near the city until Graham moves in. Over the course of the book their family grows and grows with children and Grandma and animals of every type: Teak, the dog; Katy, the goat; Errol and Berryl, the guinea pigs; Triller, the canary; Nugget, the billy goat; Toyful, the alley cat; and on and on until the horses arrive. That's when they move to the country. The suspense builds with the turning of each page; as each character arrives, even young children will sense that something's got to give. Graham's zany pictures carry the story to its surprising but perfectly natural end. (47)