Not a Fox

Creating a “delicious master plan,” Strangekin’s crafty fox protagonist, a self-identified “master of disguise,” has a single-minded bent—chicken stew—in this dialogue-driven treatment of a well-worn premise. Determined to fill an enormous black cauldron, the fox alternates costumes befitting a chicken scientist, a police officer, and other plausibly legitimizing personae. In each subsequent scene, the costumed fox approaches the same farmer, portrayed with pale skin and a beard, and makes a play for the fowl: as a police officer, “We’ve received reports of a fox pretending to be a chicken scientist. I’m afraid I’ll need to question your chickens.” The farmer has suspicions (“Say, are you that chicken scientist in disguise?”), but the fox successfully alleviates them (“Look at my badge. Look at my sunglasses!”), until the farmer’s realization necessitates adjustments to the plan. Though the plotting becomes repetitive, and the appearance of a turban-clad magician strikes an unfortunate note, vividly hued illustrations, punny strategies (“Plan D: Sleight of Hen”), and deadpan deliveries give this costumed caper a lift. Ages 3–8. (Self-published)