Review by Booklist Review
Ages 3-5. From the very first page, this cumulative counting rhyme invites children to participate aloud: «The moon is big. / The moon is bright. / A frog bar-ums on a quiet night.» Kids will count the animals as the pictures become ever more crowded and hectic: two owls whoo-hoo, three geese honk-honk, four fish whop-slap, and so on, until the peaceful forest becomes so noisy that 10 slumbering campers wake up. Manders' pictures are as zesty as the foot stompin' rhyme. The pictures burst with action and comedy, and the expressive animal characters are full of fun--jovial mice, quizzical owls, lip-smackin' coyotes. Colored in darks blues and greens and lit with bright highlights from the large, glowing moon, the art is too busy for using with a group. However, the book will be great for lap-sharing--though not right before bedtime. Stephanie Zvirin.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"The moon is big. The moon is bright. A frog bar-rums on a quiet night." But the moonlit woods are actually far from idyllic. With each succeeding spread, Singer (Didi and Daddy on the Promenade) and Manders (Dirt Boy) add cumulatively larger groups of audibly antsy, comically exaggerated animals. "Somebody's got an appetite!" observes a narrator, as the gouaches reveal guilty-looking raccoons chowing down on garbage. These scavengers join a tally of critters ("Six raccoons churr-rurr, Five coyotes rowl-yowl, Four fish whap-slap, Three geese honk-honk, Two owls whoo-hoo," plus the original frog) while the animals' attention moves from general noise-making to approaching a dark tent. The species' convergence triggers a slapstick wildlife melee, which in turn provokes the appearance of "10 sleepy campers" and one very bright flashlight. Singer expertly builds her bumptious population to what should be a boffo finish, but the book ends on a weak note: "What a NOISY night!" Manders initially conveys the magic semi-stillness of a night outdoors; as the landscape gradually becomes standing room only, the rich, darker hues become a wonderful visual foil for the burgeoning, goofy critters who get carried away by just doing what comes naturally. Ages 2-6. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 3-This fantastic counting book will strike a chord with young children and has all the right stuff to become an interactive storytime classic when used with small groups. It begins with a full yellow moon and a frog, and ends with a cacophony of rowdy, rambunctious activity during a night that's anything but quiet. The audience-participation options are almost limitless-the book could work performed as a round, in sequence with a gradually climbing crescendo, with stick puppets, or children could simply chime in whenever onomatopoeia is required. The illustrations are laugh-out-loud funny; Manders's owls don't just hoot, they really get into the action. So do his raccoons, fish, coyotes, and finally his tent full of campers. At last everybody scatters in a frantic, explosive display, leaving the dust to settle against the backdrop of a blue-black, tranquil night. The simple text rhymes nicely and boasts a wonderfully rhythmic cadence. (However, "The grass is white," to rhyme with "night," features green grass in the illustration.) Children will enjoy this delightful picture book for more than the racket it produces. Then again, any opportunity to create a din is always welcome. Buy several copies, and be sure to tuck one away on the storytime shelf.-Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SC (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
In this counting book, a night in the country proves anything but quiet when a series of creatures (one frog, two owls, three geese, etc.) create a cacophonous ruckus ([cf2]bar-rum, whoo-hoo, honk-honk[cf1]). The cumulative tale, humorously illustrated with chaotic scenes of wide-eyed animals, finally ends when the noisy animals are startled by ten yawning campers. From HORN BOOK Fall 2002, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
What starts out as a quiet night with only one frog bar-rumming soon turns into a raucous cacophony as two owls, three geese, four fish, and a host of other creatures yowl, scratch, and honk. Finally, ten yawning campers awaken to shine a flashlight on the bug-eyed noisemakers. Singer's (Footprints on the Roof, p. 110, etc.) simple and spare rhyming text is carried by Manders's (What You Never Knew About Tubs, Toilets, and Showers, 2001, etc.) hilarious illustrations. As the rhyme repeats the preceding verses- "Six raccoons churr-rurr, / Five coyotes rowl-yowl, / Four fish whap-slap"-each double spread is increasingly crowded with crazily cavorting critters. The lovely endpapers of the moon over pine trees correspond to the title, which sets the reader up for the noisy surprise between the teasing covers. Great fun for reading and laughing out loud, or even for a choral recitation. (Picture book. 3-5)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
