Dino-Gro

PreS-Gr 2–Cole is disappointed with a new toy dinosaur called Dino-Gro, because it’s so little! But while he is considering the next steps, Dino-Gro jumps into a glass of water. Then the creek. The fish tank. A shower. Dino-Gro craves water, and craves growing. Eventually, Dina-Gro is too big for the house and disappears. Cole despairs of ever seeing his friend again, but in an emergency (that creeps up in the illustrations just as it creeps up on Cole) Dino-Gro arrives to save the day. Cole has pale skin, as do his parents: his father has a kind of groovy beatnik vibe and his mother is very visibly pregnant. Myers does a brilliant job of using the illustrations to tell a lot of the story. The harmonious and complementary give and take of the art and text will have readers pointing out clues and rereading for extra details.