In this entertaining (if unattributed) update of the classic Yiddish folktale "It Could Always Be Worse" (see Margot Zemach's 1976 version for the gold standard), two kids complain that it's too crowded in the back seat of Mom's car -- what she calls her "gracious-spacious automobile" -- as they drive into town. "'I'm squished,' said Max. 'Move over, Molly.' 'I'm squashed,' said Molly. 'Move over, Max.'" Unmoved, Mom proposes a solution: "Too tight for two? I know what to do." She stops to, sequentially, pick up Peter Jeeter with his piglet, who are waiting for the bus; Dolly Waddle with her two ducklings, walking to the Duck Pond; and Inch Pinch with her three puppies, whose quadracycle has a flat tire. (The lively pencil-and-digital illustrations portray a community of both human and animal residents.) Max and Molly keep grumbling, but they eventually catch on, and when they spot Scooter Mooter and his four calves by the side of the road, they hold their tongues. The schooled siblings continue to "hush-mush" as Mom drops her passengers off at their respective destinations. And after a pleasant time shopping at the outdoor market, including a "sweet treat," Max and Molly are only too happy to stretch out in the back of what they, too, now term their "gracious-spacious automobile." Rector's hyphenated-rhyme-laden text may be a bit much for some, but the humorous situation, cumulative action, abundance of audience-pleasing animal sounds ("QUACK QUACK! QUACK! QUACK! OINK OINK! WOOF"), and well-earned resolution should make readers glad to go along for the ride. Martha V. Parravano March/April 2021 p.72(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

PreS-Gr 1--In this uncredited reimagining of the familiar Yiddish tale about a rabbi and the ungrateful resident of a one-room house, famously retold by Margot Zemach in It Could Always Be Worse, two siblings get frustrated being squished in the back seat of their mother's car. Max and Molly complain that being in the backseat is too crowded. Their mother picks up all manner of hitchhikers, from fidgety pigs to a mother dog and puppies. The children soon realize that the more they complain the more animals will be joining them, and settle down. One by one the animals in the backseat are dropped off at their destinations. Max and Molly, with light brown skin and dark hair like their mother, stretch out and revel in their "gracious-spacious" car. This is a humorous nonsensical story about gratitude, told in comic illustrations that make full use of exaggeration. It's odd that the story's origins aren't cited. VERDICT Children who want a modern take on an old story will giggle at the silliness of this version.--Annmarie Braithwaite, New York P.L.

An assortment of farm animals joins siblings for an increasingly crowded car ride. Max and Molly complain to their mother, who is driving, that they are "squished" and "squashed" in the back seat of their roomy car. Mom knows what to do. She invites Peter Jeeter and his piglet to "wiggle-piggle" in. Max and Molly complain. Mom then invites Dolly Waddle and her ducklings to "flit-feather" in. Max and Molly complain. Mom goes on to invite Inch Pinch and his puppies. Finally, Max and Molly have learned their lesson. They "hush-mush." Mom drives by Scooter Mooter and his tutu-clad calves and does not invite them in. Family by family, the animals along for the ride get out. Quiet reigns, and all is well in the "gracious-spacious" automobile. It is a tale replete with rhymes and wordplay that tips over into preciosity and grows silly and tiresome. The animal sounds are the usual ones, but hand-lettered over the illustrations, they feel like an afterthought and do not integrate neatly into a read-aloud. Stories with growing crowds of animals abound--think of the delightful Mr. Gumpy's Outing--but this one, unfortunately, adds little new to the mix. Delicately penciled and colored cartoons are amusing; in them, the human family appears interracial. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10.5-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 33.6% of actual size.) Let this car pass by. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.