Artie and Julie Book

Artie was a happy little lion, and Julie was a happy little rabbit—until one day Julie was sent to the grassland to eat grass, and Artie was sent to the grassland to eat . . . rabbit! Distracted from their destinations, they both discover a delicious jellyberry patch. Driven by a sudden storm into a nearby cave, they become friends before they know they are meant to be enemies. Each returns home with a new friend, a tuft of each other's fur as a keepsake, and a surprising story to tell their parents. A unique design adds depth to this clever tale—when Artie and Julie are apart their parallel stories are told on separate split pages, but when the two become friends the pages join together as well. Filled with playful art that adds a whimsical tone, this amusing story encourages young readers to overlook differences and demonstrates that fear should never be an obstacle to friendship.

School Library Journal

K-Gr 2

Artie is a happy little lion, and he's supposed to hunt rabbits. Julie is a happy little rabbit, and she's supposed to avoid lions. Their tedious stories are told simultaneously, on pages that have been cut in half. "Artie's story" fills the top portion of the book, with "Julie's story" below. Each animal dutifully submits to its parent's training until finally, after many grueling lessons, both are ready to set out for the grasslands alone. But they stop at the jellyberry patch instead, where they are caught in a storm and seek shelter in the same dark cave. The two sworn enemies spend the rest of their day playing together, and then go home. Chen's illustrations are winsome enough and feature a cool palette, smiling critters, and variegated landscapes. But the format doesn't work well: the pages stubbornly flop shut and get mixed up, and it's a struggle even for adult hands to keep them in order. If nothing else, this pitched battle keeps readers busy and interested, because the story doesn't.-Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SC