Humpty's great fall

Humpty Dumpty stars in Moore and Cleland's pun-fueled tribute to northerly autumnal traditions. The rhyme's classic start opens, establishing a refrain that sees the jolly egg repeatedly saved from his destined tumble: "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.// Humpty Dumpty had a great...// Would you look at those leaves? The hot summer sun had left him feeling a bit fried. Humpty was so happy autumn had arrived." Preemptively leaping off the wall at various intervals, Humpty rakes leaves, makes a cider run, dons knits, and more. Via scratchy detailing and bright colors, digital cartoon vignettes exaggerate fall scenes as the egg companionably encounters fellow nursery-rhyme characters. When the troupe, having together ensured Humpty's safety, end up back at the protagonist's digs for a harvest party, the opening rhyme finally resolves with a pleasingly punning variation. Human characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages up to 7. (Aug.)

Riffing on the double meaning of the wordfall, this tale finds Humpty Dumpty reveling in autumn's pleasures. "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall," declares an unseen narrator as the giant egg, clad in rust-colored overalls and a yellow shirt, smiles sleepily. Humpty is soon wobbling, and the narrator continues: "Humpty Dumpty had a great…" As the page turns, little ones will grin when the expected tumble doesn't occur. Instead, our hero gracefully hops off the wall to "take a closer peek at the foliage." All the while, though, Humpty wonders if there isn't something else he ought to be doing. But what? He heads home, and an encounter with a fiddling Cat (of "Hey Diddle Diddle" renown) reminds Humpty that it's time to rake the leaves. The egg man returns to his wall, inspiring several more rounds of the now-familiar formula: the unfinished rhyme, a surprise ending that sees Humpty involved in a new autumnal task, and that nagging sensation that he should be doing something else. Moore and Cleland mine humor from the repetition of the gag as Humpty engages in fall activities such as apple-picking, joined by brown-skinned Jack and Jill, brown-skinned Miss Muffet, and light-skinned, red-haired Bo-Peep, among others. Simple cartoon art sets a wholesome tone and complements the text, which ends with a happy nod to wordplay. Children old enough to recognize nursery rhyme allusions will have a ball. A cute and clever autumnal outing with a metafictive twist.(Picture book. 4-7) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.