Grump

“”Look how tired this Mommy is Tired and frumpy Grouchy chumpy Oh, what a grump!”” Then, for contrast,

“”Look at Baby Smart, good Baby Happy Baby.””

Baby loves to make gravy out of applesauce and ketchup and, when it’s just right — not too lumpy, not too bumpy — suddenly, DUMP! It goes on Baby’s head. Will Baby take a nap now? Mommy puts Baby gently into the crib. But when Mommy starts to tiptoe out, Baby cries and whimpers, cries and whimpers. So Mommy reads to Baby — and reads and reads until…guess what!

The surprise ending of this beguiling picture book will delight the very young — and their tired but loving mothers. Janet Wong, a well-known poet, reflects on not only her own but every mother’s experience in her rollicking rhyme. The bright watercolors of John Wallace, an English artist whose work is published both in the United Kingdom and the United States, complement the text to perfection.