“I yam a donkey,” states a big-toothed blue donkey. A persnickety, spectacled yam replies, “The proper way to say that is 'I am a donkey.’” To which the donkey replies, “ You is a donkey, too?” It’s Abbott and Costello all over as the ever-more-enraged yam (“I am not a donkey. I am a YAM! ”) doesn’t grasp the futility of trying to get the donkey to understand a few basics of good grammar (not to mention the difference between tubers and mammals). The arrival of some other vegetables provides the yam with the perfect opportunity to get his point across: “I am a yam … He is a carrot. She is a turnip. They are green beans.” That’s a truth the donkey is finally able to sink his teeth into. Cece Bell’s laugh-out-loud picture book makes for a grammar lesson that’s easy to swallow and entertaining, too. Bell uses a flat, naïve style to great effect in her illustrations, in which the personified vegetables and donkey are wonderfully expressive. (Ages 5–9)