FICTION

How to Catch a Groundhog

by Alice Walstead (text) & illus. by Emma Gillette
Sourcebooks/Wonderland. (How to Catch). Dec. 2024. 40p. Tr $12.99. ISBN 9781728293035.
COPY ISBN
K-Gr 3–Children playing football on a snowy afternoon disturb the underground home of a resting groundhog the day before February 2, when the town’s mayor arouses the rodent to predict the start of spring. The kids know that the Groundhog’s Day prediction is valued, but the critter has left its underground home! They try everything from a spa treatment to snacks to lure it back in this latest addition to the “How to Catch” series. The rhyming text often feels as contrived as the children’s play. Colorful, if uninspired, illustrations (based on the designs of Andy Elkerton, who did the art for previous books in the series) depict the winter scenes, anxious children trying to put things right, and the almost naughty groundhog and its cozy abode.
VERDICT Not an essential purchase.
Reviewed by Maria B. Salvadore , Oct 11, 2024

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