I Am Otter

Garton began telling stories about Otter on his blog in 2009, and his furry, childlike creation has racked up quite a following since (she has well over 16,000 Twitter followers). For the uninitiated, Garton’s debut picture book does a bang-up job of introducing Otter, who walks readers through her messy life with Otter Keeper, a young working-age man who “found me in a box on his doorstep one day.” There’s a decided Garfield-and-Jon quality to their relationship, with the oft-exhausted Otter Keeper at Otter’s beck and call. In this story, Otter opens a “toast restaurant” at home with Teddy, a plush bear who’s the literal silent partner. The setup lets Garton showcase lots of playroom jokes and Otter’s energetic personality: at one point, she scowls as she tries to foist a hand-scrawled bill on a toy robot and vacant-eyed stuffed pig (“Teddy hadn’t told anyone how much our toast would cost”). There’s a lovely dimensionality and sense of physical comedy in Garton’s digitally created artwork. Combined with Otter’s winning brand of self-importance, it’s plenty to propel her into future adventures. Ages 4–8. [em]Agent: Brooks Sherman, the Bent Agency. (May) [/em]