Holey Moley

Ehlert (Scraps) gives readers a mole's-eye-view of the subterranean life in this multilayered exploration of the natural world. The cheeky narrator%E2%80%94a gray cut-paper mole with giant purple claws and a furry outline created with pinking shears%E2%80%94makes its entrance via die-cut circles in the book's cover and first page ("See this hole? I dug it. I'm a mole"). From there, it digs through an elaborate series of tunnels, moving from the lawn to a neatly planted vegetable garden; along the way, the mole passes numerous brightly colored worms squiggling around in the mottled dirt, but seeks out more delectable fare ("Eating earthworms is OK, but not every day"). Ehlert's cut-paper critters and objects come together in a harmonious symphony of textures, shapes, and rich colors (the mole tunnels are a vibrant red, contrasting starkly with the dark, fibrous paper used for the dirt), and the mole's narration reads like a series of excited, extemporaneous rhymes. End pages that identify and briefly discuss various garden-variety bugs conclude this energetic book on an educational note. Ages 4%E2%80%938. (Oct.)