Me and Meow

Gudeon's first picture book uses na%C3%AFf stick figures and candy-colored backgrounds to create a book that feels as if it might have been drawn and written by an actual child. "Breakfast Time," it reads on the first page, which shows a stick-haired girl at a table with her red cat, Meow, beside her, bowls of what looks like porridge in front of them. "Yum, Me," it says under the girl. "Yum, Meow," it reads under the cat. She pulls the cat in a red wagon ("Go, Me. Go, Meow"). Gingerly, the text tiptoes into poetry as it describes the many things she and Meow do together: "Stump jumping./ Leaf leaping./ Slip sliding./ Hide hiding." The two enjoy the whole day with no interference from parents or friends; the only doubtful moment is when the girl loses Meow and falls off her tricycle. Meow reappears promptly (and can be found, reassuringly, hiding in the background in all the spreads in which the girl looks for her). The book's lighthearted devotion to everyday pleasures should please youngest readers. Ages 2%E2%80%935. (Sept.)