Clever puns and elaborately detailed, surreal artwork illuminate a collection of comically grim verses that can't help but tickle the funny bone. Reader, if I had more time I'd say au revoir in rhyme, Sayonara, ciao in verse But I have to catch a hearse. Peek inside ONCE UPON A TOMB and find twenty-two poems, each of which tells, in hilarious verse, the story of an untimely demise from a school principal to a bully, a food critic to a cafeteria lady, an underwear salesman to a soccer player. Complemented by Simon Bartram's deadpan illustrations, J. Patrick Lewis's cryptic tour of headstones and epitaphs is silly, spooky and far from grave. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Lewis's (Please Bury Me in the Library) 22 morbidly funny elegies pair perfectly with Bartram's (Man on the Moon) hilarious acrylics. Each poem skewers a particular profession, from the fed-up food critic ("Bury me with/ Pizza, please") to the cafeteria lady ("Here lie the bones of Mabel Grady,/ Extremely thoughtful school-lunch lady./ She never served a Jell-O mold/ If it was more than six weeks old"). Several of the poems are deliciously brief (for Fortune Teller: "Here lies"). Meticulously rendered, Bertram's paintings toy with traditional icons of death. The fortune teller gazes glumly at a tiny Grim Reaper in her crystal ball, while the actual unwelcome visitor himself looms behind the clairvoyant. "Underwear Salesman" achieves utter synchronicity between text ("Our grief/ Was brief") and art, as the bereaved family, sporting slips, black ties and briefs, surround a framed head shot of the smiling dearly departed. A couple of poems lack the instantly accessible images that make the others such winners, but overall these are a total scream. Ages 6-10. (Aug.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 3-5-Lewis is back, this time with a quirky collection of humorous epitaphs. He honors departed farmers, food critics, lighthouse keepers, and many others. Some of the best are also the shortest, like the one for an underwear salesman, "Our grief/Was brief." The longer verses sometimes reach the point of pure silliness, but all are delightfully irreverent. The font and type suggest engravings on a headstone and support the mood of the book. Bartram's surrealistic acrylic illustrations heighten the humor and, in some cases, clarify the meaning of Lewis's ubiquitous puns. A great selection for a Halloween read-aloud or reluctant poetry readers.-Donna Cardon, Provo City Library, UT Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr. 2-4. Proving himself to be anything but a grave man, Lewis offers 22 irreverent epitaphs and other mortuary verses, each of which is paired with a large, polished portrait or burial scene created in richly hued acrylics. Most of the sentiments are very short. Underwear Salesman, for instance, runs but two lines (Our grief / Was brief ); the Fortune Teller is even shorter (Here lies ). Other entries allude to sad ends suffered by a schoolteacher (decapitated by a paper airplane), a dairy farmer (Here is a lesson / for Larry LeGow: / NEVER SIT UNDER / A HEREFORD COW ), a food critic, a book editor, a cafeteria lady, a bully, and more. The last one celebrates a philosopher who finally came to a conclusion. This rare look at the lighter side of death should elicit plenty of surprised giggles from young audiences. --John Peters Copyright 2006 Booklist From: Syndetics Solutions, Inc. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.