When Elephant Met Giraffe

This collection of three stories about a pair of friends with contrasting personalities is based on a series of online comics by newcomer Gude. He draws his elephant and giraffe costars with heavy black lines and presents their stories in the manner of a puppet show, with a backdrop of blue sky, anonymous greenery, and the occasional cloud. The brassy elephant wears her floaty toy to the water hole. “Can I swim, too?” she asks the giraffe, who’s already in the water, but her overture falls flat as the giraffe stares back silently. She stalks off, hurt, but spends the night researching her mysterious acquaintance and discovers that the giraffe’s silence is a species trait. “I read somewhere you don’t make much noise,” she says the next day. “So you don’t need to say anything.” It’s a believable, even touching mix of condescension and affection. The other two stories—a pretzel-making disaster and a game of pretend—don’t work quite as well, as the giraffe’s silent, subtle mugging is outweighed by the elephant’s bluster. Ages 3–5. Agent: John Rudolph, Dystel & Goderich Literary Management. (Feb.)