So Tortoise Dug

Tortoise loves to dig, but Mouse, Tortoise’s burrowmate and friend, prefers to lounge while sipping tea. After their home floods, they determine that Tortoise will create a new burrow, and then the two will play. When Tortoise is finished, though, Mouse is gone, and more animals appear, asking Tortoise to dig rooms for them. In a sequence that holds most of the story’s energy, Tortoise obliges—over and over again—while worrying about Mouse’s return. Kastner (While You’re Asleep) works in digitally finished multimedia spreads that carry a strong retro vibe. The growing burrow is shown in cross-section, the new rooms listed as they pile up (“a cool pad for the mole skinks, a place for the spotted skunk to rest”). Then the new members of the community also disappear. Though Mouse’s reappearance brings some comfort, Tortoise’s growing distress overshadows a friendly end reveal. An author’s note, which states that the gopher tortoise and the Florida mouse are real-world roommates, describes this work as a “pourquoi tale” (“a fictional explanation of why something is the way that it is”), but the story leaves lingering questions about why the animals cohabitate. Ages 4–8. (Mar.)