The Hour of the Frog

by Tim Wynne-Jones and Wynne-Jones

Book Overview

A little girl hears the nighttime noises of a frog getting a snack in her kitchen and makes up her mind to confront him. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316963097
• ISBN13: 9780316963091
• Release Date: April 1990
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Age Range: 4 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 7

Customer Reviews

That's One Scary Frog

Every night the little girl can't sleep. The parents sleep -- even the fish sleeps -- but she stays awake for The Hour of the Frog. He comes from the swamp and into the house, on the prowl for food. The girl hears him at the refrigerator, opening the pickle jar, stuffing his frog face with strange assortments of edibles. She hears him climb the stairs towards her room, for what nefarious purpose is unclear, but the frog's voracious appetite is hint enough to make a young child nervous. The illustration of the frog's ascent, mouth filled to capacity and leaking pickle juice suggests an unsated hunger. On the frog moves; he's in her bedroom; the moment has come...and then the girl stands up and scares him away back to his swamp. She lies back in her bed and indulges in dreams of her own appetite: breakfast is on her mind, a big breakfast, with maybe some flies in it.I was enchanted by the text and illustrations of this ghost-story spoof, and it's almost impossible to convey how witty and amusing this book is. *The Hour of the Frog*, however, is more than merely a spoof: the illustrations indicate that this little girl does not live in a normal world. Everything's a bit off-kilter, a bit strange. The appetites of frog and girl are intimidating (who is going to eat whom?). And we know that the frog will be back again and again, and she will be awake again and again. For me, reading the book was a lovely and fun experience. I wanted to read it to my children a lot and make it creepy and funny at the same time. Alas, I can only give it four stars here because, frankly, my children didn't want me to read it to them - more than once. I'm going to try it on my four year old when he's older, and *your* four year old may be as entranced as I was. Try it on your children; the fit may be just right; you'll get to keep the book if they don't care for it, and *The Hour of the Frog* belongs in any serious collection of children's literature.

That's One Scary Frog

Every night the little girl can't sleep. The parents sleep -- even the fish sleep -- but she stays awake for The Hour of the Frog. He comes from the swamp and into the house, on the prowl for food. The girl hears him at the refrigerator, opening the pickle jar, stuffing his frog face with strange assortments of edibles. She hears him climb the stairs towards her room, for what nefarious purpose is unclear, but the frog's voracious appetite is hint enough, and the illustration of his ascent, mouth filled to capacity and leaking pickle juice, suggests an unsated hunger. On the frog moves; he's in her bedroom; the moment has come...and then the girl stands up and scares him away back to his swamp. She lies back in her bed and indulges in dreams of her own appetite: breakfast is on her mind, a big breakfast, with maybe some flies in it. I was enchanted by the text and illustrations of this ghost-story spoof, and it's almost impossible to convey how witty and funny this book is. *The Hour of the Frog*, however, is more than merely a spoof; the illustrations indicate that this little girl does not live in a normal world; everything's a little off-kilter -- a bit strange. The appetites of frog and girl are intimidating (who is going to eat whom?). And we know that the frog will be back again and again, and she will be awake again and again. For me, this was perfect; I wanted to read it to my children a lot and make it creepy and funny at the same time. Alas, I can only give it four stars here because, frankly, my children didn't want me to read it to them -- more than once. I'm going to try it on my four year old when he's older, and *your* 4 year old may be as entranced as I was. Try it on your children; the fit may be just right, you'll get to keep the book if they don't care for it, and *The Hour of the Frog* belongs in any serious collection of children's literature.