School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-This story opens on a whimsical note: "Once upon a time.../once and never again.../just once.../a frog and a chicken fell in love." A cumulative tale ensues as the frog presents his beloved with a lovely golden ring and it skips away, bouncing by a jogging swan, a skateboarding rabbit, a goat on a tricycle, and a singing dachshund who's leaning on his motorbike. Each animal tries to catch the elusive ring and invites the previous group to jump on its vehicle. The ending is happier than happy. Taylor is an accomplished poet, and the ring isn't the only thing that goes "Zing!" here. The illustrations are every bit as fizzy as the writing. Barton uses a white background to set off gently colorful and lightly outlined shapes and a font that sometimes changes color for emphasis. The animals' expressions are hilarious and the action is hyperkinetic. The image of the frog, goat, chicken, swan, and rabbit precariously piled onto a speeding trike are both harmonious and sidesplitting. There are hordes of cumulative stories around, and this type of narrative strengthens memory, offers opportunities for prediction, and is entertaining to boot. The Ring Went Zing! should bounce its way to the upper tiers of the genre.-Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Right from the title, Taylor (Crocodiles Are the Best Animals of All!) promises a happy ending for this irrepressible frogwins-chicken-but-loses-ring story. But getting there isn't easy. "[D]on't worry," the author reassures readers who've just watched the adoring frog and chicken ("so woozled with love") fumble their golden ring, which bounces away into the distance, "the story will still end with a kiss." Barton (It's Quacking Time) shows similar consideration; as the ring bounces from place to place, her pencil and watercolor vignettes quiver with activity, yet colors stay soft, faces friendly, and the sequence of events clear. Animals on various vehicles are recruited to join the chase, not always successfully: "The sausage dog looked like he knew what to do./ In actual fact, he hadn't a clue." Taylor's rhyming prose mimics the bouncing ring with lots of delicious sound words thrown in ("The goat saw something whirr with a whizz./ But it came so fast, she got in a tizz"); a small surprise ending crowns the adventure. A love story that's long on charm and entirely free of mush. Ages 3-5. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
