It's Science Day, and all the students are showing off their projects, be it ant farm or erupting volcano. Jaws drop, however, when Scott takes the stage with his impressive robot: "This is the bot/ the bippity bot,/ the rabbit-eared robot,/ that Scott built."
Echoing the popular British nursery rhyme and cumulative story "This Is the House That Jack Built," things--chaotic things--start to happen in the classroom, starting with the topple of the ant farm: "These are the ants,/ the angry ants,/ that tread on the teacher/ in polka-dot pants,/ who calmed the class/ that gawked at the bot/ that Scott built." The giant Venus flytraps go wild for the ants: "These are the plants,/ carnivorous plants,/ that feasted on flies/ and fiery ants,/ that tread on the teacher/ in polka-dot pants,/ who calmed the class/ that gawked at the bot/ that Scott built." Author Kim Norman (This Old Van; Ten on the Sled; Puddle Pug) doesn't miss a beat with her jaunty rhyme as frogs leap from the "bathtub bog," the classroom boa escapes, a Tesla coil sparks... and Scott's bot saves the day.
Italian illustrator Agnese Baruzzi creates an inviting, spacious and colorful classroom with stylish, textured artwork and a diverse cast of characters, including the brown-skinned robot inventor Scott. Subtly embedded photos of actual objects, such as light fixtures, drapes and plant leaves--and many other funny, delicious details--will have readers lingering over every page. (The singed Science Day banner, a casualty of the erupting volcano, is a nice touch, for instance.) A blue-ribbon read-aloud for Science Day or any day. --Karin Snelson, children's & YA editor, Shelf Awareness