Overview
Welcome to Arugula’s tea party! Everything’s going to be just perfect, because that’s exactly how she likes things. The problem: perfection is no fun for her guests—they’re too nervous to touch or eat anything. And when someone unexpected arrives, ready to get her party started, Arugula’s horrified. Especially when everyone seems to like him better than her
With its adorably human hedgehog heroine, comic-book style panels, and witty thought balloons, this will be a huge hit with young readers!
Synopsis
Welcome to Arugula’s tea party! Everything’s going to be just perfect, because that’s exactly how she likes things. The problem: perfection is no fun for her guests—they’re too nervous to touch or eat anything. And when someone unexpected arrives, ready to get her party started, Arugula’s horrified. Especially when everyone seems to like him better than her…
With its adorably human hedgehog heroine, comic-book style panels, and witty thought balloons, this will be a huge hit with young readers!
Kirkus Reviews
Gauche guest rescues dull party, teaching host a lesson. Everything is clean and bright in hedgehog Arugula's house. (Her coiffed quills resemble a Mohawk, and she wears pearls.) As she cleans and practices the piano and does her daily yoga, she hatches the delicious idea of a tea party for her friends. These include Pansy the mouse, Basil the raccoon, Pistachio the beaver et al. Arugula makes a point of not inviting the raucous squirrel Fidget, who zooms by on a skateboard. Arugula's house looks impeccable for the party, and her lavish spread entices the guests, but she makes them uncomfortable with petty criticisms about dropping crumbs and not using coasters and handling the delicate tea set roughly. Social failure looms when Fidget bursts in and loosens things up; soon everybody's dancing, even the (at first) reluctant Arugula. Dillard's crisp illustrations-in colored pencil, watercolor and gouache-and the book's design mimic 1950s styles with flair. Nifty, though the prose doesn't match the visual drollery. (Picture book. 3-6)