Our Mammoth

This picture book is both quirky and intriguing, all the more so because of the promise that it is to be followed by three other volumes: Our Mammoth Goes to School, Our Mammoth in the Snow and Our Mammoth Has a Baby. The Gumble twins, Saturday and Bing, are at the beach one day when a giant block of ice drifts ashore. The ice starts to melt, and inside they find a giant woolly mammoth. Accordingly, they ride the beast home to the trailer they share with their unflappable mother, who graciously accepts this newcomer to the household. Poet Mitchell's eloquent prose accentuates the story's deadpan humor. Lamont creates characters with great verveher mammoth is an unforgettable creature. The book blends commonplace elements with fantastic ones, in much the same way that a child imagines them. Ages 4-8. (September)