The Book That Jack Wrote (by Jon Scieszka)

Never one to leave anything well enough alone, Jon Scieszka puts a tack on the chair where the nursery rhyme "The House That Jack Built" heretofore comfortably sat. Why, Scieszka seems to wonder, settle for singsong when a little mayhem enlivens the proceedings? But parody ought to choose its targets carefully, and this one sure feels underage.

Most fun here is unraveling the time-space reversals at work. Why is the baby humming a tune wearing a pie for a hat, and what got him so pumped as to toss the cow sailing over the moon? Daniel Adel's paintings are full of Rembrandt light and rich, rich color. The frames painted around the artwork give the impression of deep-dish pies, still hot and ready for the introduction of a fork.