The Frogs and Toads All Sang

June 8, 2009
Originally created by the late Lobel as a handmade book for a fellow author, these poems and pencil sketches (skillfully given washes of color by his daughter, Adrianne) are the progenitors of Lobel's classic Frog and Toad series. But even kids who haven't spent much time with those amphibious friends will find plenty to enjoy. As befits something made for a friend, the drawings of genteelly domesticated amphibians large and small bring to mind the spontaneity, intimacy and exuberance of the sketchpad; even the very young should sense that Lobel was a man who was delighted to see his imagination take shape on paper. He versifies expertly and with gentleness: a green frog's virtuosity on the violin doesn't keep him from yearning, “And yet.../ I'd rather play/ The clarinet.” Polliwogs, their bodies composed almost entirely of broad, mischievous grins, revel in a school where “all we do is wiggle./ We do not read.../ We do not write.../ We only squirm and giggle.” A lovely addition to anyone's Lobel bookshelf. Ages 4–7.

Starred review from September 1, 2009
PreS-Gr 2-Mischievous, warmhearted, silly, and touching, this short collection of stories in rhyme trips easily off the tongue in true Arnold Lobel style. In playful fashion, they feature Miss Frog baking pies and sugar buns, two lazy toads contemplating the night, a bright green frog playing the violin, a school for squirming polliwogs, and an adventurous jumperoften with a surprise-ending twist. A poem about a frog party, for example, concludes with: "They danced in the meadow/They danced in the street/They danced in the lemonade/Just to cool their feet." Adrianne Lobel, a set designer by profession, catches just the right mood in applying frothy, airy colors to her father's line art. A short introduction reveals how the collection came to be some 20 years after Lobel's death. This delectable combination of word and image is a treat not to be missed."Barbara Elleman, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Amherst, MA"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2009
Preschool-G Long before his landmark Frog and Toad series, the late Arnold Lobel gave the 10 rhymes in this volume as gifts to friends. Now his daughter, Adrianne Lobel, has collected them for the first time and added her own clear watercolor washes to his pencil sketches. These selections are lacking the friendship drama that make up so much of Lobels award-winning Frog and Toad titles, and the main audience for this will probably be childrens-literature students and adult fans. Still, young kids will enjoy many of the rhymes, each one opposite a playful, full-page illustration. The best of them have a surprising turnaround and are far from sweet and cozy. In one selection, little frogs watch Miss Frog bake apple pies and then eat them all herself. The title poem is the best: all dressed up for a party, the frogs danced in the meadow. / They danced in the street. / They danced in the lemonade / Just to cool their feet.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2009
Color by Adrianne Lobel. Upon his death in 1987, the creator of the beloved Frog and Toad early-reader series left behind several handmade books, which are collected here. The clever, pithy, storylike rhymes, which represent the first time that Lobel "wrote about frogs and toads," feature art (hand-colored by Lobel's daughter) that's more sketchlike than what his fans are used to, but no less charming.

(Copyright 2009 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)