Lottie's New Beach Towel

Lottie's New Beach Towel by Petra Mathers
1998

     Lottie the hen gets a very special package from her Aunt Mattie.  Inside she finds a note "This might come in handy this summer," and a brand new red and white polka-a-dot beach towel.  The towel came handy right away since Lottie was having a picnic that same day with her best friend Herbie.  Through out the day, the beach towel keeps coming in handy and helping Lottie solve all sort of problems.  She gets to use the towel as a sail and a blanket.  The towel even saves a wedding day, when Lottie manages a to turn it into a veil that the bride had lost.
    The beauty of Lottie's New Beach Towel lies on its illustration and in the concise language that keeps the story moving quickly through many mishaps and situations.  I've used the book in class a couple of times, covering the text and having the students write the story themselves.  It's a very cool summer read aloud.