Ollie

PreS-Gr 3—In Ollie, the duckling main character doesn't want to hatch. Friends Gossie and Gertie wait, watch, and cajole, but still he will not come out of the egg. In the follow-up book, Ollie covets the brightly colored rain boots of his friends, and traipses after Gossie and Gertie until they each share one of their boots with him. Despite thin plots, rudimentary illustrations, and flat characters, the simple sentences and vocabulary of these books makes them accessible to beginning readers. In the accompanying audio downloads, the narrator's voice sounds computer generated with little emotion or inflection to draw listeners in to the story. However, the simple navigation of the downloads, separate listening and read-along tracks, and under-three-minute running times make these audiobooks a good fit for the youngest readers.—Tara Hixon, Cashion Public Schools, OK