The Frog Inside My Hat: A First Book of Poems

Selections from well-known poets--including Nikki Giovanni, Eve Merriam, John Ciardi, Langston Hughes, Jack Prelutsky, and others--capture the mystery and wonder of childhood.

PreSchool-Grade 2-Thirty-seven poems by well-known poets are featured in this collection. The volume includes works by Aileen Fisher, Karla Kuskin, and Jack Prelutsky, as well as a few by poets best known for their adult poetry, e.g. Gertrude Stein and Sylvia Plath. Classic poems-Gelett Burgess's "The Purple Cow" and A.A. Milne's "The Furry Bear"-appear, along with more contemporary selections. The poems are loosely arranged by topic: animals, nonsense, food, weather and the seasons, and personal reflections. Moore's large, cheerful paintings feature brightly colored, personified animals and smiling children, and echo the lighthearted quality of the poems. X.J. and Dorothy Kennedy's Talking Like the Rain (Little, 1992) and Jack Prelutsky's Read-Aloud Rhymes for the Very Young (Knopf, 1986) are more comprehensive anthologies for this age group and may prove to be more useful to librarians and teachers. The strength of this volume, however, is that, like Lee Bennett Hopkins's Surprises (1984) and Karla Kuskin's Soap Soup (1992, both HarperCollins), its length, large type, and accessible format invite young children to read the poems themselves.
Barbara Chatton, College of Education, University of Wyoming, Laramie
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The jaunty, green spotted frog on the cover of this inviting collection of simple poems is a cheerful indication of what readers will find inside. With few exceptions the poems are short (many of them three or four lines), uncomplicated and suitable for reading to preschoolers. The rhymes--by such well-known authors as Merriam, Hoban, Prelutsky, Kennedy, Lobel, McCord and Livingston--appear singly or in pairs on each spread, leaving Moore ( Songs of Summer ) plenty of room for her ebullient watercolors. A purple cow's birthday party, a friendly monster brushing his teeth with pickle paste, and a huge bunny tumbling in the winter wind are just a few of the sprightly images that adorn the text. Loosely grouped according to topic, Robinson's ( Space Probes to the Planets ; Bear and Alligator Tales ) selections focus on subjects and activities of interest to preschoolers: the weather, food, animals, sibling relations and bedtime. While the volume breaks no new ground, its peppy, optimistic tone offers much to enjoy. Ages 3-8.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.