Loved the illustrations. ( )

The eponymous Lazlo, in love with a girl starring in a stage production of Alice In Wonderland, buys the object of his affections a beautiful red rose and sets off for the Peacock Theater in order to present it to her. When he drops the rose and a mischievous cat picks it up, a lively adventures ensues as Lazlo gives chase, and cat and boy run back and forth through the theater...

As a tribute to the theater - the author even includes an afterword in which he details some of the superstitions of the theater world, many of which are violated by Lazlo during the course of his chase - Lucky Lazlo is a fun little picture-book. The artwork, done in much the same style as Have You Seen My Dragon? and Have You Seen My Monster?, is immensely engaging, with detailed black and white pen and ink illustrations, enlivened by the occasional object or figure in color. That said, while this new Steve Light picture-book has a lot of appeal, I did feel that the story was a bit fractured, and thought that the real tale - Lazlo giving chase to the cat - was sandwiched between a love story that never felt quite real. Leaving that aside, I would recommend Lucky Lazlo to all Steve Light fans, and to anyone looking for children's stories about the theater and its traditions. ( )