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*Lizards, Frogs, and Polliwogs* by Douglas Florian - buy it online

 
 
Also by Douglas Florian:

Poem-Mobiles: Crazy Car Poems

Bing Bang Boing
Comets, Stars, the Moon, & Mars: Space Poems & Paintings
Autumnblings
zoo's who
beast feast: poems
Insectlopedia



 

Lizards, Frogs, and Polliwogs
by Douglas Florian
Ages 4-8 48 pages Voyager Books April 2005 Paperback Recommended at 5 stars of 5   

This delightful book of strange things and clever rhymes is a joy to read. The rhymes are imaginative, instructive, silly and alliterative. This gem is appealing on many levels: the light-hearted poetry, the colorful, whimsical illustrations and nature's gallery of fascinating creatures to stimulate youthful curiosity.

With a granddaughter in the first grade, I am always looking for books that offer attractive illustrations, but also incorporate ideas that lead to an appreciation of words. After reading each poem/page, my granddaughter was soon clamoring to read the rhymes herself:

"But did you know that alligators
Sometimes swallow second graders?"

Suddenly, each page is her favorite, like "The Iguana": "I wouldn't wanna/ Be an iguana_" We choose from the skink, the gecko, the cobra, the Komodo dragon, the box turtle and even the polliwog:

"We polliwoggle.
We polliwiggle.
We shake in lakes
Make wakes
And wriggle."

By the time we reach "The Bullfrog", she has lowered her voice to copy the croaking bullfrog. This book is a delight to share with a child, an occasion for tongue-twisting rhymes and giggles. The highest praise I can offer is that I have bought more of Florian's exceptional work.
 


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  Luan Gaines/2005 for curled up with a good kid's book  






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