Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers (Ready to Read: Level Two)

PreS-Gr 2--In this latest installment about a boy and his oversized pup, Henry empties his piggy bank and buys a spy kit. He wears the dark glasses himself and puts the hat on Mudge. While spying around the neighborhood, they discover a paper with a coded message near some trash cans. Henry takes it home, thinks about it for a bit, decodes it, and then sends a return message. After several exchanges, Henry and Mudge meet the other spy who also has a dog in disguise. Calling themselves "Crackers" for being good at cracking codes, the boys form a club and carry real crackers in their pockets for ID. Rylant tells the story in a concise format while maintaining a sense of humor and flow of words. The combination of the text and Stevenson's colorful, expressive illustrations makes this book more than just a beginning reader--preschoolers will welcome this duo into storyhour programs.-Nancy A. Gifford, Schenectady County Public Library, NY