Frog Boots

When Dylan spots a pair of shimmery purple boots with poison dart frogs on them, he knows they’re just the thing to kick off life at a new school; discovering that some of the frogs glow in the dark further confirms his choice. But when Dylan gets to school, a classmate singles out his “girl boots,” and another confirms, “my little sister has those.” Esbaum understands how kids try to lay low after a humiliation (Dylan avoids eye contact for a week) and ends on the right note: he wears what he wishes, and makes a new friend along the way. While the narration sometimes sounds more like well-meaning parent than child (“The dopey things could rot, for all he cared”), illustrations by Heinsz lend the story a friendly resonance—and lots of grinning frogs. Ages 4–7. [em](Apr.) [/em]