Whimsy

Two animals—a hybrid pig-rat and a fox with a bushy tail, rosy cheeks, and a whiskery beard—attempt to out-whimsy the other. “What is whimsy?” asks the fox in the opening scene, as she twirls parasols on the beach while wearing a flouncy pink skirt, striped stockings, and pointy red shoes. (Halfway into the story, she gets a name, Ms. Fox, though it’s unclear if this is an editorial oversight or meant to be whimsical.) Mr. Prat, the pig-rat, counters that he embodies whimsy: “I’m born of a pig that met a rat and fell in love.” Ms. Fox responds that her penchant for reading upside down and cartwheeling till dawn demonstrates that she knows what whimsy is all about. Mhasane’s airy pencil-and-watercolor paintings convey the characters’ joie de vivre as they eventually realize they think as highly as the other as they do of themselves (their wedding procession involves pink pantaloons, unicycles, and bats). Readers should get a rough idea of the concept of “whimsy,” although, unfortunately, “self-involved” describes Ms. Fox and Mr. Prat, as well. Ages 4–8. [em](Aug.) [/em]