Most Marshmallows

Marshmallows, with their uniform appearance and soft outlines, make fine stand-ins for average citizens. Watkins (Big Bunny) draws black hair on their heads, gives them big eyes that blink and stare, and in constructed mixed-media sets, supplies them with winsome furnishings, books, and food made of cardboard, construction paper, fabric, and sprinkles. “Most marshmallows don’t grow on trees,” the text begins. “They go to school... [marshmallow pupils peer from a school bus as more wait on the sidewalk, wee knapsacks on their backs] and learn to be squishy and how to stand in rows.” Crucially, though, some marshmallows resist conformity. They “somehow secretly know that all marshmallows can do anything”: perform in circuses, explore outer space, move beyond what they are told is possible. Following one’s dreams is an idea well worth celebrating, and so is appreciating a world’s details. Close-ups of this marshmallow universe—the lawn flamingo, the infant mallows growing out of acorn cups, the solemn classroom diagrams of how to recover after being squished—will draw readers back for another look. Ages 3–5. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (Apr.)