Penny & Pip

In this sanguine work from longtime collaborators Fleming and Rohmann (Honeybee), young Penny is the lone witness to a dinosaur egg’s hatching during a class trip to the Museum of National History. As Penny, portrayed with brown skin, tours the dinosaur exhibit, the baby sauropod tags along, undetected by anyone else: he perches watchfully on a model of Earth as Penny walks through a solar system diorama, successfully begs for scraps from Penny’s sack lunch, and earns the name Pip for the squeaky “Pip-Pip” sound he makes. When the two return to the dinosaur hall for one last look, Penny has a realization: If they’re surrounded by remains of dinosaurs who “lived long, long ago,” who is going to take care of Pip? Coupled with Rohmann’s pencil and digitally colored art, which conveys soft black lines and velvety textures, Fleming’s calm, reportorial tone creates a lovely, almost old-fashioned openheartedness. And the story’s resolution, which involves a smartly executed subterfuge in the museum gift shop, speaks to self-assured Penny’s steadfastness in applying clever logic to the fantastical. Ages 4–8. Agent (for Fleming and Rohmann): Ethan Ellenberg, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency. (June)