The Tortoise & the Hare

A captivating winner--start to finish! 

Caldecott winner Pinkney's magnificently illustrated version of this famous fable gives the race the excitement of an Olympic event. On the title page, the hare challenges the tortoise and gives his neckerchief to the fox referee to use for a flag. The setting is the Southwestern desert, and the animal spectators range from bobcat and vulture to field mouse and frog. The hare leaps forth as if shot from a cannon; the tortoise, grim-faced in an engineer's cap and bandanna, plods forward. Iterative text, delivered word by word at tortoise speed, bolsters the story's lesson. "Slow and steady," reads the spread that shows the tortoise making his way through a pond that the hare cleared with one leap. "Slow and steady wins," shows the tortoise lumbering past the snoring hare. "Slow and steady wins the," sees the hare struggling to catch up as the tortoise strides across the finish line. Pinkney's portraits are so lifelike that the animals appear to breathe, and they present a peaceable kingdom in which predators and prey live in harmony. Ages 3-6. Agent: Sheldon Fogelman, Sheldon Fogelman Agency. (Oct.)

PreS-Gr 3—Following up on his superb rendition of The Lion & the Mouse (Little, Brown, 2009), Pinkney has created yet another stunning interpretation of a classic tale in this virtually wordless picture book. Endpapers establish the desert setting with a map of the course through the cacti and rocky region of the American Southwest. Tortoise and Hare, each sporting a bandana, are joined by their animal friends at the starting line for the famous race. Fox in his broad-brimmed hat gives them their marks, gets them set, and off they go as Hare bounds away, leaving Tortoise behind in a trail of dust. Pinkney uses watercolor, colored pencil, and pastel paintings to create vibrant characters that are in colorful contrast to the tans and natural browns of the desert. Long horizontal lines and Hare leaping off the page propel the story-and the race-ever forward. The limited text, used sparingly but extremely effectively, reinforces the theme of the story-that the journey is as important as the ultimate goal-and builds one word at a time: "slow," "slow and," "slow and steady" until finally the race is won to the cheers and high-fives of the supportive spectators. Pinkney takes care to show Tortoise overcoming challenges and Hare demonstrating good sportsmanship and healthy competition. An artist's note explains the creative process and motivation for retelling the well-known tale. This spectacular success is certain to become a classic in its own right.—Kristine M. Casper, Huntington Public Library, NY