The Horn Book Guide

PICTURE BOOKS

Park, Linda Sue

Xander's Panda Party

40 pp. | Clarion | September, 2013 | Trade ISBN 978-0-547-55865-3 $16.99

(1) K-3 Illustrated by Matt Phelan. Plans for a modest fete grow increasingly tangled for Xander, the lone panda at the zoo. At first he's pragmatic, but by the time a crocodile slips into the mix, he's a wreck. Liberal use of internal rhyme makes Park's text sing. Phelan's sprightly ink and watercolor illustrations show Xander spinning until he's prostrate, convinced his party will balloon out of control.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2013