Peepsqueak! (review)

Peepsqueak the baby chick is "on the move," a refrain that repeats many times as Peepsqueak pursues his dream: to fly high. He tries sailing off walls, hills, even a tower of other chicks, but he just can't get airborne until Old Gray Goose takes him under his wing—literally—and gives Peepsqueak a ride through the sky. The determined Peepsqueak is a likable little guy, and Clark helpfully supports her very young listeners with repetition ("Peepsqueak jumped up, up, up! And then he fell down, down, down"), occasional rhyme, and a recognizable recurring motif (a farm animal tells Peepsqueak he can't fly; he keeps trying). A sunny yellow little fellow, Peepsqueak is a bright focal point in his red T-shirt (with "P. S." printed on it) against the digitally colored grass-green and sky-blue backgrounds. The simply drawn farm animals are dot-eyed and cuddly-looking, and children will especially enjoy searching for the small gray mouse that appears in many of the spreads. Pair this with any number of "chick" books, such as Stiegermeyer's Cheep! Cheep! (BCCB 4/06), for a poultry-themed storytime, or have kids who are on the move themselves act out the "up, up, up" and "down, down, down" parts for a lively story session.