Fans of the inimitable Madeline books will be charmed anew by Ludwig Bemelmans in this 21st-century reissue of Sunshine, his delightfully silly 1950 classic. With instantly recognizable rhymes and elegant illustrations, Bemelmans tells the story of Mr. Sunshine, a cranky landlord seeking a quiet tenant who "pays the rent/ Year in, year out, to the last cent." He is not pleased when the "sweet old lady" to whom he grants a lease opens a music school in the apartment below his. Only a literary master could blend a meeting with a lawyer, a soggy trek past New York's architectural highlights and 2,000 unwanted umbrellas into a children's story with such perfectly logical results. A Christmas carol finale makes Sunshine a most cheerful gift. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor