I loved Pat Skene's "What a Hippopota-Mess!" and I would give it five stars. One thing I liked was that all of the poems were rhyming, which made the text feel more upbeat and lighthearted. I especially liked author's heavy use of alliteration in each poem, particularly in the poem "Creepy-Crawl-Critters." The repetition of the letter s, like in the lines "I often see snakes that can slither and slide,/ looking slippery, slimy and slick," seemed to mimic the hissing sound that snakes make. When reading these phrases, I felt as if I could almost "hear" the sound of a snake hissing. The alliteration also helped to tie the words together in an interesting way that made the poems feel more cohesive. I also liked the author's use of onomatopoeia in each of the poems. Words like "BOOM!" and "splash!" made the language feel more exciting and energetic. My favorite part of the book, however, was that each poem was followed by "interviews" from the characters in the poem. These "interviews" were in Q&A format and shared many interesting facts about the plants and animals in the previous poem. In reading these informational sections, I learned that centipedes and lobsters are closely related, that horned lizards can shoot blood from their eyes, and that oak trees are struck by lightning more often than other types of trees. Because of the inclusion of these facts, I believe that the "big idea" of the book is to entertain readers while teaching them about the animals and plants around them in order to build an appreciation for nature. The silly poems make readers laugh and pique readers' interest in learning about the animals and plants tin the poems. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this collection of poems, and I believe that it deserves five stars. ( )