Book excerpt: Lying upon a beach along the Nile, Omar the Crocodile watches some elegantly dressed ladies stroll by. In their talk, he hears mention of a crocodile store that sells marvelous things and he decides to find it. Down the river, across the sea, overland he travels to the beautiful city of Paris where his friendly overtures terrify people into unconsciousness or drive them up trees in fright. Through the deserted streets he searches until at last he finds it —but what a disappointment. The things sold in the crocodile store are not for crocodiles at all; they’re all made from crocodile skin. How Omar takes sweet revenge becomes a clever and funny ending. Ecology was never more charming.