Peanut Butter and Jelly (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #3)

Narwhal and Jellyfish are the stars of this easy reader series by Ben Clanton. Clear descendants of Arnold Lobel's Frog and Toad and James Marshall's George and Martha, the books feature a pair of friends. Jellyfish is the realist, the worrier of the pair while Narwhal is the optimist, the care-free impulse follower.

It's a tried-and true formula and one that works well in this new simple graphic format. The books read like a very simple comic with very simple story lines. For young readers eager to climb on the graphic novel bandwagon, these books are perfect entry level stories.

In this, the third of the series, Jellyfish takes on the parental role of coaxing Narwhal to eat an unfamiliar food, in this case, peanut butter. Predictably Narwhal loves the new taste sensation. Unpredictably, he becomes so obsessed with peanut butter, he devours an entire ocean's supply with hilarous results.

The offbeat humor and silly situations are sure to attract kids, and the repetitive vocabulary makes these easy readers very easy indeed. These books will be a hit for those who are searching for titles to appeal to reluctant readers. And for anyone who likes humorous non-sequiturs and broad silliness. They aren't strong or funny enough to bear repeated rereadings as Frog and Toad and George and Martha do, but are perfect bite-sized morsels to make reading fun.