Over the River: Over the River - Hardcover

Derek Anderson

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689876351 ISBN 13: 9780689876356

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2005

Synopsis

Over the river Mama, Papa, and Baby Turkey embark for their vegetarian Thanksgiving Feast. But when a hungry boy and his dog start sniffing around, the turkeys have got to think fast before they become the main course!
Acclaimed artist Derek Anderson's glorious autumn artwork adds heaps of holiday humor to Lydia Maria Child's classic Thanksgiving song. And readers of all ages will be wondering who gobbles up whom until the dessert finale.

About this title

About the Author

Derek Anderson is the bestselling artist and cocreator of the Little Quack series. He is also the talent behind Gladys Goes Out to Lunch and Over the River: A Turkey’s Tale. He and his wife Cheryl reside in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Visit him at DerekAnderson.net.

Reviews

PreSchool-Grade 3–Anderson's amusing acrylic artwork provides a new twist on a favorite holiday song. The book contains the familiar lyrics, but the illustrations show that in this version, it's a turkey family on the way to Grandma's house. As a young bird carrying a Pilgrim doll and his parents walk through the snowy woods, they meet a horse that knows the way/to carry the sleigh and does so–literally, trotting up a hill with a sled tucked under one arm. Meanwhile, a young hunter and a barely ferocious-looking hound are going over their plan to catch a gobbler for dinner. They give chase as the birds come into view, but an odd scarecrow (the turkeys in disguise) temporarily stops the pursuers in their tracks. Then the horse screeches downhill on the sled right into the middle of everything, and the pie is ruined. But, this is Thanksgiving, after all, and everyone sits down for a nice meal–except for the boy, who is still outside hunting down his hunting hound. This is a fun, humorous addition to Thanksgiving collections. Children will enjoy looking at the entertaining illustrations and comparing the chaos pictured there to the words of the old song. The lyrics and music are included on the endpapers.–Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A top-hatted father turkey, his bonnet-wearing wife and their bespectacled chick, clutching a pilgrim doll, set out for Grandmother's house in Anderson's (Little Quack) rendition of Child's song. The feathered family meets a horse who literally "carr[ies] the sleigh" up a snowy hill while they stick to the road and encounter a predatory dog. The expressions on the fleeing fowls are priceless, as are other comical touches, but the hound's change of heart seems sudden, so that the final scene of turkeys, hound and horse sharing a bounteous meal, sounds a false note. All ages. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

PreS-K^B. Here's a turkey's take on Lydia Maria Child's old song about traveling over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house. Little Tom Turkey, clutching his Pilgrim doll, sets out with his mom and dad on Thanksgiving. The subsequent action follows the song, but with several added twists and turns. As the words to the familiar song loop across the pages, the pictures tell a story of their own, making it clear that the boy and his large, toothsome hound that appear in the wood are intent on having turkey for dinner. Anderson's eye-popping acrylic pictures, big and vibrant enough for group sharing, give immediacy to the ensuing chase, which resolves itself in a dramatic pileup with a friendly Thanksgiving feast with dog biscuits and vegetables, not turkey, on the menu. The music is on the endpapers, handy for a sing- or play-along. Connie Fletcher
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689876351
• ISBN 13: 9780689876356
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Derek Anderson
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 40