There Once Was a Puffin

Boldly colored pictures complement a rollicking story in rhyme about a little puffin whose fondness for fishes (he has them for supper and tea) sets the stage for an unusual friendship.

Originally written more than 25 years ago, Jaques's Lear-like limerick makes a virtue of simplicity, affectingly conveying its message in just a few lines. Living on an island surrounded by fish, a solitary Puffin ("Just the shape of a muffin") is pining away for want of a pal-"So he sat on his island,/ And he cried for a while, and/ He felt very lonely,/ And he felt very small." But the fish have the answer ("You can have us for playmates/ Instead of for tea!"), and now the Puffin subsists on a landlubber's diet-with company at every meal. Kvasnosky's (Pink, Red, Blue-What Are You?) full-spread illustrations-rendered as crisply outlined swaths of clear, bright colors-add personality and pizazz. Her carefully composed pictures match the poem's forthright tone; together, text and art relay a beguiling tale of friendship found in unexpected form. Ages 2-4.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.