One is his proposed state budget. It's 1,284 pages long, full of pie charts, bar graphs and descriptions of new scholarship programs for graduating high school seniors.

The other is 32 pages long and written in rhyme. It's a children's book Easley wrote called "Look Out College, Here I Come!" and it will be published by the National Education Association, the country's largest teacher's union.

"Never be happy to be in the back," Easley writes. "Go to college and lead the whole pack."

His verse style places him squarely in the literary tradition of Dr. Seuss: "Some colleges are large and some are small, and some have ivy growing on the wall."

The illustrations, by Easley's younger sister, Marie, show a multicultural classroom of kids who read books, ride the bus and do science experiments. A goldfish named Flappy provides comic relief.

Marie Easley, a Federal Reserve manager and part-time artist who lives in Dallas, said the goldfish is named for a niece's pet fish. But she said she based the character on the governor, who used to entertain his siblings when they were younger.

"Flappy really took on a life of his own," she said. "He was just doing these goofy silly things. The kids didn't take him all that seriously, but he kept being what he was and all of a sudden he was very successful."

Notes on paper towel

She said the governor came up with the idea for the book a year ago, sketching his first notes on a paper towel. She volunteered to illustrate it using a computer, and they worked together by phone.

When the manuscript was finished, Gov. Easley approached John Wilson, executive director of the National Education Association and a former Raleigh teacher who has worked closely with state Democrats.

The NEA has long published resource books for teachers. A spokeswoman said it does not typically publish children's books, but she said that "Look Out College" is in line with the group's mission and goals.

The book will be printed by Pearson Custom Publishing with dues from union members. Five thousand hardcover copies will be available for $22.95 and another 5,000 paperbacks at $19.95 through the NEA's Web site and online retailers like Amazon.com.

The Governor's Office stressed that no taxpayer money is involved in the project and that any profits from the book will be donated to charity.

But some critics are as upset as Curious George's hapless victims. They argue that Easley, who proposed a 5 percent raise for public school teachers in North Carolina in his budget, should not be involved financially with their union.

"It's raised eyebrows that he's hawking a book to be sold by the country's largest teacher's union," said Dallas Woodhouse, a spokesman for the North Carolina chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a group that often spars with the governor.

Easley unveiled the book at a news conference on the budget Thursday.

Holding up a copy that had been shipped directly from a printing house in Georgia, he said he was trying to put one in "every school in the state" in order to get kids thinking about college "early on."

"The families who buy it probably don't need it, and the families that need it ... their parents won't be able to purchase it," Easley said. "So the only way to get that information to them is through the schools."

It won't be easy to get copies to each of the 1,267 public schools with a kindergarten.

The state Department of Public Instruction puts together a list of recommended books, but it does not require local school districts to stock them. Decisions to buy a book or accept a donation are made by individual librarians.

And while writing a book is often a sign that a politician intends to run for higher office, Easley's office said that was not the case with "Look Out College."

"I don't think that any of the people that this is targeted at will be able to vote for the governor for anything for a long time," said Seth Effron, deputy press secretary for the governor.