Paul & Antoinette

Kerascoët (the French duo of Marie Pommepuy and Sébastien Cosset) presents a lovely slice-of-life story featuring a pair of thoroughly independent pigs who have little in common. Younger sibling Antoinette favors messiness, rambunctiousness, and outdoor play: tidying up after breakfast is one of her chores, since “licking the plates and sticky knives is her favorite thing,” and she’s no less shy about licking a wild snail out in the meadow, as Paul looks on with disgust. Paul’s idea of a good time is cleaning the house and making intricate model ships, but although his conversations with Antoinette often highlight his cerebral side (on the meanings of flowers: “The gold button evokes joy, the daisy embodies innocence, the red poppy signifies remembrance”), the expressive watercolor artwork reveals his rich inner life (during one of Paul’s cleaning spells, he imagines himself as a pirate, washing the floor like a swabbie and wielding a spray bottle like a pistol). It’s a gently funny and emotionally observant portrait of the rewards of spending time with people who aren’t just carbon copies of yourself. Ages 3–7. (Oct.)