Tennis, Anyone

PreSchool-Grade 1–Seven-year-old Tom Foley receives a lot of great gifts for his birthday. They all crash or whirr or beep, except for one–a tennis racket. It doesn't DO anything. Tom's father convinces him to try the game, though the boy has never heard of tennis and doesn't know of anyone who plays. Eye-catching, digitally rendered cartoon illustrations feature a boy with Brillo-pad hair, just like his dad's. The pictures and type vary in size, with the text sometimes placed over the art. The mention of a cat eating and passing gas all day is apparently included to make kids laugh and actually just might be the only, though rather unnecessary, bit of humor in the tale. Rackets and balls are scattered throughout, unobtrusively hidden in wall art or on a banner behind an airplane. The colorful pictures, using a wide range of perspectives, are the highlight, since the story line is slight and disappointing.–Maryann H. Owen