There’s only one thing the wombat narrating this spare, funny story loves more than a nap: carrots. After winning a stand-off with “strange creatures” (reindeer) for a plate of them, the wombat unwittingly hitches a ride on the back of Santa’s sleigh. “I smell carrots!” It turns out every stop includes a bounty of carrots that the strange creatures prove adept at finding, and the wombat proves adept at eating. Jackie French’s amusing premise gets a boost from Bruce Whatley’s illustrations, which feature abundant nonverbal communication (who knew beleaguered reindeer could say so much with their eyes?) and understated humor. (Ages 3–7)