Please, Malese!

Full of sly wit and the vibrant colors and rhythms of Haiti.

"My toes are suffering," says Malese as he stretches out in his hammock. "They need new shoes, that's what they need." Malese has not a penny to his name and nothing to trade, but does he worry? Not at all. His pockets may be empty, but his mind is full of clever ideas. It isn't long before he's thought up a trick to get himself some fine new shoes. From marketplace to mountainside, Malese outsmarts his neighbors with trick after trick, until they've had enough and are determined, for once, to get the best of him.

Readers will giggle when they see who gets the best of whom in this fresh and funny trickster tale, illustrated with art that explodes with the brilliant colors of Haiti.

"Tom Sawyer looks like a small-time operator compared to the haitian trickster Malese . . . This well-paced, funny folktale will supplement social studies curricula and delight anyone who admires a winsome trickster." - Booklist

Amy MacDonald's books include Quentin Fenton Herter III and Rachel Fister's Blister, which appeared on Fanfare, The Horn Book's Honor List. She lives in Falmouth, Maine.

Emily Lisker has illustrated numerous books. She lives in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.