Monstergarten

A diminutive fuchsia monster named Patrick has been told that being scary is a prerequisite for attending Monstergarten. Luckily, his gap-toothed blue friend, Kevin, offers to teach him how. On a funny wordless spread, Kaminsky shows the monsters making their scariest faces, hanging upside down, and stretching out their tongues (meanwhile, a cute white cat easily out-scares the pair). Though Kaminsky’s Day-Glo characters look like the adorable result of a biochemical spill, readers will recognize that Patrick’s mother’s advice (“Just be yourself”) is just as applicable to human classrooms as it is to monster ones. Ages 4–5. Author’s agent: Christina A. Tugeau. Illustrator’s agent: Pippin Properties. (July)