An Extraordinary Egg

"On Pebble Island, there lived three frogs: Marilyn, August, and one who was always somewhere else." Like the amiable animals in Lionni's previous, inimitable fables, these anthropomorphized amphibians have a quiet but memorable adventure. In the spotlight is the roving frog, Jessica, who is "full of wonder," and proclaims everything she finds--even common pebbles--"extraordinary." When she comes across a stone that is "perfect, white like the snow and round like the full moon on a midsummer night," she lugs it home, whereupon Marilyn, "who knew everything about everything," announces that it is a chicken egg. "I was right! It is a chicken!" she exclaims smugly when the egg hatches and a baby alligator emerges. Kids will giggle at the frogs' repeated references to the friendly newborn as "the chicken." They'll be even more tickled when the frogs chuckle at the "mother chicken" who, finally reunited with her offspring, greets her "sweet little alligator." "What a silly thing to say!" concludes the omniscient Marilyn. In his 40th book, Lionni is in typically fine form. Ages 3-7. (Apr.)

PreS-K--Leo Lionni, that picture-book master who was always a bridesmaid (he recevied four Caldecott Honors, but never the Medal), has been a favorite among librarians and children for generations. After a successful career as an art director and graphic designer, Lionni began creating children's books at the age of 50. From the startling simplicity of his first book, Little Blue and Little Yellow (1959), to the exquisite compositions and thoughtful storytelling in Swimmy (1973), Inch by Inch (1960), Frederick (1967), and Alexander and the Wind-up Mouse (1969), Lionni's style is characterized by textural collage work, naturalistic palettes, and straightforward, child-friendly text. His last children's book, An Extraordinary Egg, was completed in 1994, when Lionni was 84 years old. It's the charming tale of Jessica, a frog "full of wonder," and her extraordinary pebble that turns out to be an extraordinary egg. Jessica and her froggy friends insist that the hatchling is a chicken, depite clear visual evidence to the contrary. Back in hardcover, this classic picture book is a delightful read-aloud and deserves a spot on the shelf along with Lionni's other great works.

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Lionni "is in typically fine form" with this witty story about three frogs who have a "memorable" adventure, said PW. Ages 4-8. (Nov.)