There's a Giraffe in My Soup

The old joke about a diner complaining about a fly in his soup gets an update from newcomer Burach, as a dapper boy discovers a string of impossibly enormous animals in his entr%C3%A9e. Working in pencil, paint, and digital media, Burach gets in a lot of solid visual jokes: when readers first see the boy, he has just left the chunky plastic keys to his tricycle with a befuddled-looking valet, and the titular giraffe's legs and neck trail like wobbly strands of spaghetti as the waiter races the bowl of soup back to the kitchen to fetch a replacement. Later, the sights of giant alligators roaring out of tiny bowls and a lion peering out from under a cloche are sure to trigger laughs. It's only in the text that the story falters: occasional rhymed lines and bits of wordplay ("Waiter! Waiter! Save her! Save her!.... There's an elephant in my soup, and I don't think she can swim!") don't quite keep pace with the humor of the artwork. Ages 4%E2%80%938. Agent: Lara Perkins, Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (Feb.)