That's Mine, Horace

From School Library Journal PreSchool-Grade 2-Horace is back with a new dilemma. This time he takes a truck he finds in the schoolyard, and refuses to give it to Walter, who claims it is his. When his teacher asks if the truck is Walter's, Horace denies it. When his mother asks about it, the little leopard says it is a gift from Walter. The adults' assurances that they know Horace is honest make him feel even worse about his behavior, and he has such a bad night that he is too sick to go to school the next day. Keller's watercolor-and-ink cartoons deftly capture the little animal's feelings of guilt and his relief when a get-well note from Walter provides a way for him to set things right. A two-page spread in which Horace's bed appears as a big orange truck against a black background powerfully conveys the young leopard's middle-of-the-night anxiety about what he has done. This story will provide a good springboard for discussion of a situation that will surely resonate with young readers.