Illustrated by Patricia MacCarthy
This is one of our all-time favorite picture books. With eye-popping, dream-like jungle illustrations and the bounciest ever verse, this books begs to be read-aloud and poured over again and again and again.
Ms. Mahy's story has little in the way of plot - all we know is that we are in the jungle with 17 kings going somewhere...the book opens thus:
Seventeen Kings on forty-two elephants
going on a journey through a wild wet night,
Baggy ears like big umbrellaphants,
Little eyes a-gleaming in the jungle light.
Not only is the verse remarkably fun to read aloud, it offers much in the way of discussion of word usage, rhyme schemes, vocabulary (and made-up words!), alliteration, and more. Of course, the toddlers will be quite happy to bounce along with the catchy beat while ooohing and aaahing over the tigers, crocodiles, pelicans and more, that inhabit this gorgeous book.
This would also be a fabulous book/poem for the older children to memorize and a non-threatening way to introduce poetry to any poetry-phobes you may know.
Worthy buying in hardback - a fine investment in a young child's library.
Think Christmas!
Blessings,
Maggie* who should probably be thinking Thanksgiving instead!
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