School Library Journal - 10/01/2008 K-Gr 4-Lively, comical illustrations enhance the abundant droll humor in this noodle-head tale that plays off the Grimm Brothers' "Clever Elsie." It stars twin bear cubs who create one fiasco after another as they try to take care of their family farm while their parents are away. Brother Jonas tells the oxen to plow the field while he sleeps and then chastises them when they just wander around: "'What a mess!' he scolded. 'After lunch, you will have to plow the field all over again!'" When Sister Juniper forgets to close the spout to the cider barrel, she compounds the mess by trying to soak up the cider with flour. A sly fox, a pig with an eye patch, and a raccoon offer to sell Sister Juniper pots and pans, and she tells them to take the money they are owed from its hiding spot because her father told her not to touch the brick under which the money is hidden. When the thieves take all of it, the siblings follow to retrieve the family fortune, resulting in additional mishaps. The expressive, lucent watercolors highlighted with Prismacolor pencils portray the foolish escapades adeptly, and the anthropomorphized animal characters evocatively represent human characteristics and foibles. Although the text is a little lengthy, the waggish humor provides a good opportunity for a dramatic read-aloud.-Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma County Library, CA Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information. - Copyright 2008 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.