Bently Hopperton is an artistic frog, pressed into egg-sitting by his friend Kack Kack the Duck. Bently can't resist painting Kack Kack's egg, and thanks to his dazzling brushwork, his charge is soon mistaken for an Easter egg and kidnapped. How Bently gets the egg back to the nest, and what happens when Kack Kack returns, proves to be an adventure of a lifetime for a young frog."Bently is miffed when his friend Kack Kack the duck ignores him to brood in her nest. After she leaves him in charge of her single egg, Bently decides to paint it. [But] when a boy mistakes it for an Easter egg and runs off with it, Bently knows his duty. . . . A book that revels in the joys of spring and song, friendship and fatherhood, and the spirit of adventure . . . a classic tour de force." —H.
Notable Children's Books of 1993 (ALA)
Best Books of 1992 (SLJ)
100 Books for Reading and Sharing 1992 (NY Public Library)
Bently Hopperton is a young frog with an artistic temperament. So when his best friend, a duck-of-the-wood named Kack Kack, suddenly abandons him to focus on hatching her newly laid egg, Bently is a bit put out.
"'Isn't it beautiful?' asked Kack Kack."
"Bently didn't know. 'It's just an egg,' he thought."
However, Bently is nothing if not loyal, so when Kack Kack asks him to watch her egg while she goes to visit her sister, he grudgingly agrees. Lonely and bored, he decides to liven up the plain white egg by painting dazzling designs on it. The egg attracts the attention of a rowdy young boy and fortunately, its extraordinary decoration saves it from an immediate smashing. Unfortunately, the boy, believing the Easter Bunny left the egg, runs off with it. Bently Hopperton to the rescue:
"'Easter Bunny, my eye,' thought Bently. 'That's a Bently Hopperton egg!... Don't worry, egg. Armed only with my wits, I'll not fail you, egg,' he vowed bravely, and took off in pursuit."
What follows is a delightfully silly romp complete with a hot air balloon that just happens to be at hand when needed, and a toy boat moored close by for a convenient getaway. William Joyce's elegant paintings and hilariously deadpan text make this a book young readers will want to keep conveniently nearby for quick getaways anytime... but especially Easter time. Joyce has written many well-loved picture books, notably Rolie Polie Olie. (Ages 4 to 10) --Emilie Coulter
