A Little Pigeon Toad - Hardcover

Fred Gwynne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0671666592 ISBN 13: 9780671666590

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 1988

Synopsis

Humorous text and illustrations introduce a variety of homonyms and figures of speech.

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Reviews

Grade 4-8 Using homonyms and figures of speech, Gwynne has created a rib-tickling collection of word-and-picture jokes sure to delight readers. Similar in tone and spirit to his A Chocolate Moose for Dinner (Prentice-Hall, 1987), this one cleverly combines lively and humorous full-page color illustrations with carefully chosen words that have double meanings. The young girl seen throughout this light-hearted volume lends continuity and helps to tie the text together. As narrator, she shares with readers her misconceptions about things that adults have told her. For example, the sentence, ``My teacher says I get along well with my piers'' is accompanied by an illustration of the child sitting on the edge of a boat dock. A couple of the witty offerings are a bit more subtle, however, and may require a bit of explanation for less sophisticated readers. The humor in the little girl sewing college pennants to illustrate ``In Sunday School they say when you are bad you should do pennants'' may be lost on children unfamiliar with the ecclesiastical term. However, the selections of less-than-obvious humor are in the minority and should not deter librarians who wish to add a fresh, sparkling title to their English language collections. Bonnie Wheatley, Emma Conn Elementary Sch . , Raleigh, N.C.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Following up his successful books on homonyms ( The King Who Rained , A Chocolate Moose for Dinner and The Sixteen Hand Horse ), Gwynne allows a bewildered girl to narrate some perplexing developments. "Grandma says our four bears came from Scotland," is paired with a picture of four bears in kilts, doing a Highland fling. Manholes, naval oranges and a coat that is "a little thread bear," are just some of the amusing twists of the language that Gwynne illustrates with the literal-minded images of a child. The pictures are surprising, and revealed in a rapid-fire pace, until the little girl concludes "Yarns like these are hard to swallow!" as she spools spaghetti-like strands of wool around a fork. This is fun and inventive fare for all ages. Ages 6-10.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
• Publication date: 1988
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0671666592
• ISBN 13: 9780671666590
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48