cover image Ice Cream Soup

Ice Cream Soup

Frank Modell. Greenwillow Books, $12.95 (24pp) ISBN 978-0-688-07770-9

In this further tale of the adventures of Marvin and Milton ( Tooley! Tooley! and One Zillion Valentines , among others), the boys decide they want to have a birthday party, even though their mothers have both nixed the idea. They send out invitations, and then the scruffy pair tries to make the cake and ice cream. Both projects fail, even after they've sought out expert advice from the baker, Mr. Hassenfus, and the ice cream man, Mr. Cleaver. But when the guests arrive, so do Mr. Hassenfus and Mr. Cleaver, and the day is saved for the boys by gifts of ice cream and cake. The boys work hard for their reward; in Modell's zany pictures, scenes of the party and scenes of the failed baking attempt have the same air of festivity. Goodhearted humor and a happy ending give the New Yorker cartoonist's sixth book about these characters real zing. Ages 4-up. (August)