Proud to Be a Poopini. Dave Sindrey. Illustrated by Chum McLeod. Toronto: Napoleon Publishing, 1995. 30pp, paper, $10.95. ISBN 0-92914-138-5. Grades K - 3 / Ages 4 - 8. Review by Jennifer La Chapelle.

excerpt:

At school, Pogo Poopini wouldn't wear the sparkly costume that his mother had made him. Pogo wore jeans and T-shirts just like everybody else.

He didn't tell anyone about his pet anteater Lucie, who could walk a tightrope. Pogo was worried that people would think his family was weird.

Pogo Poopini is a boy with a problem: how to keep his friends from knowing that his family is made up of circus stars? Pogo copes by leading two separate lives, until the inevitable Open House at his school. When a fire breaks out during this event, the Poopinis prove their worth by helping Miss Garbonzo and her students escape. Pogo lends his own circus skills to the drama, and learns that being different can also mean being very special. Few and far between are the children who will reach adulthood without experiencing in some small measure the fear that friends will perceive some aspect of their family life as bizarre. Proud to Be a Poopini, Dave Sindrey's first book, will help children understand that differences can be a source of pride.