May 15, 2021
A skunk tries to track down the source of a foul odor. "Pee-yew!" says Skunk, nose pinched, jaw clenched, and eyes squinting against the "something [that] STINKS" in the air. Breaking the fourth wall, Skunk asks readers directly if they can smell it, too, then tells them they "sure are LUCKY" not to be able to smell it. In answer to a rhetorical "How stinky is it?" Skunk--with the help of a stink-loving fly--makes comparisons to other smells: rotten sandwiches, moldy cheese, and even "sweaty, dirty, crusty socks." This "terrible stench" is the smelliest of all, but Skunk assures readers that their "good friend Skunk" will get to the bottom of things. But as the skunk looks "in every corner" and "crack" (pulling a pair of tighty whities from the gutter), the smell gets "WORSE." What--or who--could possibly be the culprit? (Hint: It wasn't the undies.) Fenske's boldly outlined cartoon characters pop off the page, especially when he expertly plays with depth of field to break the fourth wall. The simple white backgrounds help draw attention to the amorphous, brown cloud of stink that lingers on just about every page. That the cloud remains invisible to Skunk will make readers feel like they're in on the joke (along with the deadpan fly). Though Skunk's investigation lacks resolution from their perspective, the slightest hint of Skunk's butt cheekily confirms readers' suspicions. This metafictive title engages multiple senses and is comedy gold. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Side-splittingly smelly. (Picture book. 4-8)
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May 21, 2021
Grades K-2 Pulling legs, if not fingers, Fenske portrays a clueless skunk of indeterminate gender who volunteers to track down the source of an awful but elusive smell and so sets out--trailing a noxious-looking brown cloud behind. Having engaged in some vivid comparisons ("It is stinkier than a rotten tuna and onion sandwich." "Stinky!" a delighted-looking fly comments helpfully) and then invited readers first to lean in for a smell check ("Nope, it's not you") and then to point, if they can, to the fume's source ("I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO TELL ME!"), Skunk at last waves a white flag and jets off, shrugging, "I guess we'll never know." The fact that Skunk's stench is actually a natural defense rather than a familiar digestive by-product will likely be lost on younger audiences, but as an expansion on the theme of "He (or she) who smelt it, dealt it," it will unfailingly elicit gusts of giggles.
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