The Wide-Mouthed Frog by Keith Faulkner

Illustrated by Jonathan Lambert, Dial, New York, 1996.
Hardcover edition, 16 pages, ISBN 0-8037-1875-6.

A pompous amphibian brags about his oversized oriface as he polls other creatures concerning their eating habits.

"I'm a wide-mouthed frog and I eat flies..., what do you eat?"

We learn about the varied diets of the bird, the mouse, and finally, the alligator, who ironically replies, "I eat delicious wide-mouthed frogs!"

The frog's immediate comical response is to pucker his mouth into as small an opening as possible, "Oooooh, you don't see many of those around do you?" and leaps into the pond with a "SPLASH!"

A stark white background offsets Lambert's bright watercolor characters, each of whom is placed in the book's centerfold. An impressive protruding pop-up proboscis emerges with each turn of the page, culminating with the colossal unfolding of the final "splash".

Enjoyable as a one-on-one readaloud, this little book also lends itself to frog-themed storytimes. It is especially entertaining to exaggerate mouth movements when performing the voice of the frog, and to bring to a vociferous conclusion.

The repeated sequences of the frog's interaction with each animal allow for easy memorization. Children will love creating additional animal characters and their appropriate lunches in order to keep the story alive longer.

Take Me Out of the Bathtub by Alan Katz

Illustrated by David Catrow. Margaret K. McElderry, New York, 2001.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 978-0689829031.

Katz showcases a collection of 14 very funny song poems such as "I've Been Cleaning Up My Bedroom" meant to be sung to the tune of "I've Been Working on the Railroad", and "Sock in the Gravy" sung to "Rockabye Baby". All of the topics center around ordinary home and family events gone awry, and all of the tunes are familiar nursery rhyme ditties or folk songs. David Catrow adds to the mayhem with his fanciful illustrations of food fights, overflowing bathtubs, and (ick) carsickness.

A couple of the songs need practice to scan properly, but most work well enough to sing at a toddler or preschool storytime.

Singing songs to familiar tunes aids in memorization. Most of the songs have a short plot line or expository story to tell to help with narrative skills.

Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore! by David McPhail

Dutton's Children's Books, New York, 1993.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 0-525-45079-3.

The hilarious surprise invasion of a legion of pigs overwhelms an unsuspecting homeowner. McPhail creates a delightfully oddball assortment of fanciful swine:

"Black pigs, white pigs,
Brown and pink pigs,
Making-oatmeal-
in-the-sink pigs."

"Pigs in tutus,
Pigs in kilts,
Pigs on skateboards,
Pigs on stilts."

A party ensues complete with a piggy band and refreshment in the form of a gigantic stack of pizzas, leaving the beleaguered gentleman with a disaster area and and an enormous bill. Suddenly he snaps, demanding that the swine vacate the premises forthwith.  The penitent pigs agree to undertake a massive cleaning effort, and exhausted by their exertions, plop into bed to dream:

"Of pigs and pigs
And pigs some more--
Of pigs aplenty,
Pigs galore!"

Great fun to read aloud dramatically at a pig-themed storytime.

Phonological awareness is enhanced through the simple rhyming text. Narrative skills are developed in retelling the progression of events. Dialogic conversation around the variously themed pig costumes may assist in enlarging vocabulary.

There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly by Simms Taback

Penguin Books, Toronto, 1997.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 0-670-86939-2.

Simms Taback takes this classic folksong to another level, both in content and illustration. The old lady herself is portrayed against an orange backdrop, where die-cut holes expose the contents of her ever-growing stomach on one side, and the next animal to be eaten on the other. The opposing black page is relegated to alternating strips of colored text, and busy cutouts of artistic commentary on the featured animal. The book is jam-packed with hilarious rhyming asides and sight gags. Even the back cover is adorned with a prodigious fly collection, each neatly labeled. At the sad conclusion, the moral is so patently ridiculous, that most children won't dwell on the death factor.

This is a great storytime read or dramatic sing-a-long book. Asides can be verbalized or not. It can be performed with the book, or with a puppet or flannel board lady who has each animal added to her stomach in turn. A potential craft project would be to color and/or cut out characters for a paperbag old lady for children to perform with at home. On an individual basis, the book is especially enjoyable when examined closely to see all of the Taback's clever styling.

The rhyme's the thing for phonological awareness in this little gem, but print motivation is all over this book in captions, text strips, and asides in the sky.

Caldecott Honor Book 1998, ALA Notable Book 1998.

Bugs! by David T. Greenberg

Illustrated by Lynn Munsinger. Megan Tingley Books, Boston, 1997.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 0-316-32574-0.

Greenberg will have you twitching and scratching in icky dismay with this no-holds-barred tribute to the grossness of all sorts of creepy crawly insects:

"Bugs with pincers, claws, and hair,
Bugs much fiercer than a bear,
Buggies in your underwear--
Tearing at you, BUGS!"

Accompanied by Munsinger's all too realistic drawings, he describes ways in which bugs could be found useful, including torturing other members of your family, garnish for salad, jewelry, Christmas tree decorations, and dozens of more fanciful ideas. In this hilarious poetic assault on your comfort zone, he then turns the tables and suggests that a child could become the pampered pet of an assortment of bugs, with surprising consequences!

"And then one day they'll polish you
Lovingly with wax,
Attach you to a wall
With bubble gum and tacks.
How lucky can you get?
For that's where you shall stay,
In their Human Being Collection
On permanent display."

This story is especially effective for preschool storyhour about insects when accompanied by a show and tell bug collection. Make sure that you have lots of insect books available for checkout!

This is a great vocabulary stretcher because so many different varieties of insects are named.

Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! by Dr. Seuss

Random House, New York, 1972.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 0-394-92490-8.

With typical Seussian humor, the adult in this story is represented by a watch-wearing forearm coming from the side of the page with a finger pointing toward wherever it is that Marvin K. Mooney needs to GO NOW!. Marvin is exhorted to leave expeditiously by any number of  reasonable or ridiculous methods
from bike to camelback in a bureau drawer. Filled with Seuss's typical assortment of strange and wonderful creatures and creations, the book draws to its inevitable conclusion with "The time had come. SO... Marvin WENT."

Great fun for a toddler bedtime storyhour or as the dramatic conclusion to any other program.

Phonological awareness is enhanced by sounding out rhymes of real and made-up words. Large text, very well spaced, and the repetition of "You can go..." assist beginning readers in seeing the words and deciphering the context.

Timothy Tunny Swallowed a Bunny by Bill Grossman

Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 2000.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 1-4046-4732-5.

A hilarious collection of six-line poems featuring a succession of strange characters in even stranger predicaments. Each offering ends with an ironic slapstick twist echoed or explained by the boldly humorous illustrations, as in the following with a woman pictured seated in a rowboat in the middle of a desert.

The Woman in Town
"There's a woman in town
Who's afraid that she'll drown
If ever her nose should get wet.
So she wears on her snoot
A small scuba suit.
And it works--she hasn't drowned yet."

Easy to memorize individually for use as a quick filler during a program, or in selected groups.

The rhyming text promotes phonological awareness, while vocabulary is strengthened with some less familiar words understood in context.

My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman

Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. Crown Books for Young Readers, New York, 1996.
Hardcover edition, 32 pages, ISBN 978-0517596005.

     Before a horrified audience, little sister proceeds to devour a succession of hilarious and disgusting creatures. Her unseen sibling acts as narrator chanting a progressively repetitive counting rhyme. "We thought she'd throw up then and there. / But she didn't." The explosion comes when little sister innocuously eats ten peas. Hawkes creates alarming facial expressions, highlighting the "ick" factor for 3-4 year olds and beyond. Younger children may be slightly disturbed by the dark, scary setting, and unable to fully appreciate the humor.

     A terrifically funny read-aloud for dramatically enhancing counting skills. Kids love to fill in the rhyming words at the end of each section. Also helpful individually pointing and counting out the edible objects with a single child.

1998 - Virginia Young Readers Program Award

1999 - South Dakota Prairie Pasque Award
1999 - Indiana Young Hoosier Award