Cheese, The

PreSchool-Grade 3—A rat living in the dell wonders why the posted rules and regulations state that the cheese stands alone—especially when it is a tasty-looking hunk of cheddar standing uselessly in a meadow. Napkin in hand, he goes to investigate. In this reverse version of "The Farmer in the Dell," the rat is then joined by a cat, a dog, a child, a mother, and finally the farmer father, all of whom initially insist that the cheese must stand alone, and then are persuaded to consider that the rule might actually be a silly one worth challenging. The farmer decides that if they are going to eat the cheese, they might as well make a party out of it, and everyone goes to fetch apples, pears, sausages, milk, and, of course, crackers. The folk-art quality of the illustrations is rich with country colors—barn reds, field greens, and earthy yellows, and the cartoon animals are funny and expressive. A smattering of words and music from the song is worked in effectively on most pages, and the full lyrics are printed on the last page, useful since this book will no doubt be the featured star in a number of sing-alongs.—Susan Moorhead, New Rochelle Public Library, NY
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