Lost in Bermooda

In his debut as an author, illustrator Litwin (My Name Is Not Isabella) takes a goofy premise and runs with it. The novel launches a series set on the island of Bermooda, a “peaceful Moo-topia” populated by anthropomorphic cows and other species. When a nine-year-old cow named Chuck Porter finds Dakota, a human boy, stranded on a sandbar, he brings him home. But first he “cowmouflages” his new friend with a makeshift cow costume, since the islanders fear outsiders, and “hu’mans” are reputed to be “cow-eating monsters.” Chuck makes several well-intentioned but misguided attempts to help Dakota return home, but the two have better luck foiling the plot of Wilhelm Wellington—a power-hungry cow with “plenty of moo-lah”—to take control of the island. Litwin lays it on thick with the bovine puns (Chuck and his family live in the Porter House, an area beach is called Cape Cud, and “kau’pai” is a local insult), and the ample humor and some revelations about Dakota’s backstory should leave readers looking forward to subsequent books. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 7–10. (Mar.)