Hamsters Don't Fight Fires!

PreS-Gr 1— Hugo the hamster is many things: a fine cook, a good citizen, and a wonderful friend. Some things he lacks however, are height and strength, which are the usual requisites for his dream job: a firefighter! Although Hugo flounders during a very unimpressive firefighter audition, he triumphs when quickly scaling a tree to rescue a baby bird that no ladder can reach. Root has created a wonderful message for children who may not physically measure up by allowing them to acknowledge the things they cannot do, while encouraging them to persevere with the strengths and skills that they do have. This title might have an audience problem, however, as it jumps from single-sentence pages with accompanying illustrations appropriate for very young audience, to pages with two or three long and wordy sentences on a full-page illustration. For this reason, it may function best as a read-aloud.