KEYNOTE: A swampy and suspenseful tale Epossumondas is the silliest, most lovable possum south of the Mason-Dixon line. In his fourth book, will he still be his mama's sweet little patootie if he heads into the swamp, just where Mama told him not to go? After all, the swamp is home to the fearsome and legendary loup-garou! Epossumondas isn't a naughty possum, but he sure is forgetful, and into the swamp he goes. There he meets all manner of scary creatures--but are any of them the loup-garou? And will he ever make it home to Mama? Maybe he will, as long as he remembers to do what possums do best: play possum. AGES 3-7 + Grades Preschool- Grade 2 AUTHOR COLEEN SALLEY was a professor of children's literature for thirty years and now travels widely as a professional storyteller. The old tale of "Epaminondas" is her trademark; her variation on this story appears in print for the first time as Epossumondas. A native Southerner, she lives in the French Quarter in New Orleans, Louisiana. ILLUSTRATOR JANET STEVENS is the author and illustrator of many popular and award-winning books for children, including the Caldecott Honor Book Tops DBottoms, the Texas Bluebonnet winner Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!, and the Texas Bluebonnet nominee And The Dish Ran Away with the Spoon. She also illustrated To Market, To Market by Anne Miranda, an ABBY Honor Book *