School Library Journal – Mary Jean SmithCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Gr 1-4
Lisa's class is studying probability. For homework, she must make predictions about what will, might, and can't happen over the weekend. She must also think of different events with varying chances of happening. Penny, her Boston terrier, helps Lisa visualize the situations needed for the assignment. Leedy's uncluttered, computer-generated artwork matches her clear and orderly text. What Lisa imagines-Penny eating a birthday cake, discovering buried treasure, and inventing a jet pack-appears in thought bubbles with scalloped edges. Penny stands out against the textured pastel backgrounds, and her brown eyes are like marbles. Actual photographs, such as of clothes in a laundry basket where the pet discovers a missing toy and of the vegetables they buy at the farmer's market, are used sparingly and heighten the reality of events that do happen. Readers will remember what they have learned about probability because they have seen a charming Boston terrier in both probable and improbable situations. Librarians will most certainly want this follow-up to Measuring Penny (1998) and Mapping Penny's World (2000, both Holt), which are probably in circulation at this very moment.