Aaalligator!
by Judith Henderson (Author) Andrea Stegmaier (Illustrator)
When a hungry alligator moves to their town, the residents want him out . . . until they get to know him (and learn what he's actually hungry for!).
A timely tale about empathy, acceptance and a community's response to injustice.Though he's scared at first, a boy who encounters an alligator in the woods soon realizes that all the alligator wants is companionship --- and leftovers --- and the two become good friends. But the mayor of the boy's town simply won't allow it. He even makes an official proclamation, NO ALLIGATORS! Blah, blah, blah. The townspeople agree with the mayor. At first. But once they see how kind and helpful the alligator is (and how nice it is to have someone to eat all their leftovers!), they decide the alligator should be allowed to stay. They help the alligator avoid the mayor, for a while. But it's becoming harder to find a place for him to hide. Can they all come together and find a way to keep the alligator in their town?
Judith Henderson's funny, whimsical and heartwarming picture book tale offers a playful way to engage children with issues of injustice and civil disobedience. In this timely story, a boy and then an entire community move beyond their fear of the ?other? and respond with acceptance; then they movingly take it a step further to make change. It highlights the positive character education attributes of empathy, kindness, caring and courage. Andrea Stegmaier's illustrations include loads of charming details that are not in the text, making them a perfect complement to the story's warm and quirky style. This is a terrific book for lessons on communities and social justice.
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Publishers Weekly
An unlikely camaraderie binds together this whimsical story by Henderson (the Big Words Small Stories series). On a forest hike, a pale-skinned boy discovers an "AAAAAlligator!" with its foot tangled in a vine. Assuming the gator is hungry, the enterprising child feeds him until he's drowsy enough to be lulled to sleep with a song ("AAAAAlligator, go to sleep./ People are not good to eat") and then cut loose. But when it appears in search of another song, the boy realizes that the gator is also lonely. Friendship ensues, as depicted with a joyous montage in Stegmaier's (Ella May Does It Her Way) digitally colored rust red, marigold, and forest green illustrations, which show the duo bathing, reading, and dancing. Unfortunately, the town denizens are less open-minded, and the mayor issues an official proclamation: "NO ALLIGATORS, / blah, blah, blah." The boy counters: the gator can help the town by eating its leftover food waste. Seeing the sense in this eco-friendly solution, the townspeople accept the gator, who grows large from their leftovers. Still the mayor persists in his prejudice--that is, until the community stitches together a plan to disguise the gator, discovering that their own attitudes have been transformed in the process. A fable-like tale full of gentle twists that emphasize questioning assumptions and creative problem solving. Ages 3-7. Agent: Karen Grencik, Red Fox Literary. (Oct.)
Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.JUV039120 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Prejudice & Racism
JUV002010 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Alligators & Crocodiles
Picture books
City and town life
Alligators
