Dimity Dumpty: The Story of Humpty's Little Sister

Young readers may think they know all there is to know about Mother Goose's clumsy egg character, but Graham (Oscar's Half Birthday ) sets them straight in his hilarious picture-book profile of the whole Dumpty family. As members of a traveling circus, Dorothy and Dominic Dumpty and their children, Humpty and Dimity, have built a happy life riding from town to town in their cozy egg-carton camper. As the Tumbling Dumpties, mother, father and son adore the spotlight under the Big Top each night. But little sister Dimity much prefers playing her flute and seeking out solitude whenever she can. It's not until Humpty ("something of a rascal") takes a fall while spray-painting graffiti on a wall that timid Dimity boldly steps up to save her brother. Part fractured nursery rhyme and all sweet-natured fun, Graham's story envisions a completely believable egg's-eye-view of the world. The trappings of the Dumpties and their fellow circus folk (all humans), rendered in cheery watercolor-and-ink are often laugh-out-loud funny in their detail. The trapeze-act scenes alone are worth the price of admission. Ages 3-up. (Feb.)