Paper Doorway

Move over, Shel Silverstein and Edward Lear; company's coming. From sneezing trees to reliable bunnies to food psychos, bestselling author Dean Koontz bowls his readers over with his wacky, wild, wonderful poetry in The Paper Doorway. Following the success of their earlier children's books, Oddkins and Santa's Twin, Koontz and illustrator Phil Parks embarked on an adventurous new path: funny verse (and nothing worse). With poems titled "A Cure for Ugly," "The Pig with Pride," "Stars, Mars, and Chocolate Bars," The Woggle Wrangler," "The Young Musician--Or Maybe Thug," and "You Get the Pickle You Asked For," accompanied by elaborate and witty black-and-white illustrations, the creative pair lets loose with a riotous collection that will tickle the funny bone of readers of all ages (especially those of the middle-school-boy variety). Sometimes gross, sometimes spooky, usually tongue-in-cheek, the verses tackle all subjects with equal gusto. (Ages 8 to 13) --Emilie Coulter