Don't Laugh, Joe by Keiko Kasza

This is a funny story about a possum (or opposum) who can't play dead. His mother is very concerned about him because that is a possums only defense from predators and she wants him to learn how to do it. However, when she tries to act like a bear, or a fox, or a wildcat Joe just thinks it is funny and laughs. His friends find it just as funny as he does but his mother is still very worried. When a real bear shows up Joe's mother is worried he will start laughing again but Joe does exactly what he is supposed to. Unfortunately, the bear is a cranky bear and was looking for Joe because he heard that he was funny and wanted to learn to laugh.

I thought this was a good book for children. I liked the way it brought up the topic of individuality and fitting in. When I was reading it I was trying to figure out where it was going to go and how it was going to be relatable but at the end it made sense and I thought that it brought in the importance of individuality unexpectedly which was a nice change. Using possums was an interesting change instead of using human characters and I think children would find that fun. The connection with the concept of individuality is subtle but I definitely think it is there. If not, it is an interesting start into learning about possums and how they survive in the wild.