My Life as a Chicken (by Caroline Kennedy, Ellen A. Kelley)

It's hard to understand the target market for this nicely illustrated and action-packed picture book. The story begins with poor Pauline perched on top of a nest in a gloomy barn, forced to lay eggs; kids will recognize the familiar Styrofoam containers going by on the conveyor belt below her. Life outside the barn isn't much better since the evil-looking farmer is reading chicken pot pie recipes. It's quite a way to start a story marketed at preschoolers.

The pictures and book design are terrific, but again may be too dark for some kids. The font spills out across the page, bolstering the illustrated action and adding to the suspense. Pauline's wide-eyed horror as she runs from sinister animals, flies through the air, and leaps from her hot-air balloon is nearly unchanging; it gets exhausting.