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Item Barcode | Collection | Call Number | Status | Item Holds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33607002181157 | Picture Books | LIONNI | Searching... Unknown | Searching... Unavailable |
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Summary
Summary
This egg-splosive tale of mistaken identity from Caldecott winner Leo Lionni is perfect for springtime reading and frog fans everywhere!
For three frogs, an ordinary day on Pebble Island becomes extraordinary when one of them discovers a beautiful white egg. Although they've never seen a chicken egg, they're sure that's what this is. So, when the egg hatches and out crawls a long, green, scaly, four-legged creature, they naturally call it . . . a chicken!
Leo Lionni's colorful animal fable--one of his simplest and funniest--features a hilarious case of mistaken identity that's an utter delight.
"An eggs traordinary treat from a master storyteller."-- SLJ
"Just the thing to lighten up a picture-book hour."-- Kirkus
Author Notes
Leo Lionni was born in Amsterdam on May 5, 1910. He attended the University of Zurich and also earned a doctorate in Economics from the University of Genoa in 1935. He taught himself to draw by visiting museums.
After marrying Nora Maffi in 1931, Lionni moved to Milan, Italy, where he became known as a painter. In 1939 he moved to Philadelphia and began working in advertising design. Lionni held several positions in the artistic field including artistic director and design director. He also served as president of the American Institute of Graphic Arts.
Around 1960 Lionni moved back to Italy. His first of over forty children's books was Little Blue and Little Yellow. Other titles include Inch by Inch, Frederick, Swimmy, and Alexander and the Wind-up Mouse, all of which won a Caldecott Honor. In addition, he received the American Institute of Graphic Arts Gold Medal in 1984.
Lionni died on October 11, 1999 at his home in Tuscany, Italy at the age of 89.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (2)
School Library Journal Review
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. (c) Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
``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.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved