A Tale of Two Frogs (Story Cove) by Martha Hamilton Beauty & the Beast

A Tale of Two Frogs (Story Cove) Reviews

• 
  Samantha

  A Tale of Two Frogs is a book inspired from a Russian folktale/fable. This folktale involves two frogs that are sisters. One is young, energetic, and adventurous, while the other frog is older, lazy, and cautious. One day the young frog persuades her sister to go on an adventure together. They find a big pail and jump into the white "water" below. The sisters are surprised when it isn't what they thought and ended up being trapped. The older, lazy frog gives up almost immediately, while the young frog is determined to make it out of the pail. The young frog kick, kick, kicks so much so that she churns the milk into butter and since it's no longer a liquid, the two sisters are able to get out of the pail. The moral of the story is, "When you find yourself in trouble, never give up. It pays to keep on kicking!"
  
  This story is a variant of an original Russian fable about persistence. It is geared toward children ages 4-8 and is a simple read. I've heard of other tales have persistence as a theme, but not specifically A Tale of Two Frogs. The illustrations are neatly painted and give clues to the story. I think this particular version is geared specifically for kids, but I feel it can be a great reminder for adults to remain persistent in their trials and tribulations.
• 
  Anne

  My seven-year-old son loved this story of ingenuity.
• 
  Bridget

  Have the audio version
• 
  Julie Cardillo

  Title: A Tale of Two Frogs
  Author: Martha Hamilton
  Illustrator: Martha Hamilton
  Genre: Fable
  Theme(s): Never give up, sisters, family, perseverance, animals,
  Opening line/sentence: “Once, there were two frogs who were sisters.”
  
  Brief Book Summary: This is a Russian tale of two frogs who are sisters, and the older one was lazy, while the younger one was adventurous. One day, adventurous sister talked the lazy on to going on an adventure, but they soon found themselves stuck in a bucket of cream. The lazy frog gave up, but the adventurous one did not, as she kept kicking around in the bucket. She kicked so much, that she churned the cream into a big ball of butter, and as a result of her perseverance, the two were saved!
  
  Professional Recommendation/Review #1:
  Midwest Book Review (Children's Bookwatch, June 2007 )
  Story Cove' is a series of very highly recommended stories and folk tales from around the world for beginning readers that combines charming and colorful artwork with simple, easy-reader texts ideal for children ages 4 to 8. Priced very inexpensively at $3.95 each, these 32-page picturebooks emphasizes different character traits and values such as courage, sharing, citizenship, fairness, and resourcefulness, and are further enhanced with a Story Cove website at
  www.storycove.com offering series related movies, games, and more. The individual titles comprising this entertaining and 'kid friendly' series include: "Roster's Night Out", a Cuban tale written by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss with illustrations by Baird Hoffmire; "The Magic Pot", a Chinese tale told by Pleasant Despain and illustrated by Tom Wrenn; "The Clever Monkey Rides Again", which is a West African story, and "The Drum", a folk tale from India, both of which are told by Rob Cleveland and illustrated by Tom Wrenn; "Anansi And The Tug Of War" and "Anansi And The Pot Of Beans", which are two African folktales told by Bobby and Sherry Norfolk which is nicely illustrated by Baird Hoffmire; "A Tale Of Two Frogs", a story from Russia retold by Martha Hamilton and Mitch Weiss, illustrated by Tom Wrenn; "The Bear, The Bat, And The Dove" featuring three stories from Aesop and "The Clever Monkey" a folktale from West Africa, both being retold by Rob Cleveland and illustrated by Baird Hoffmire; "The Magic Apple", a Middle Eastern folk tale and "How The Tiger Got His Stripes", a folk tale from Vietnam, each of which are told by Rob Cleveland and illustrated by Baird Hoffmire. The 'Story Cove' series titles would make particular good choices as school and community library reading program incentive prizes. Books in Series ...., August House, $3.95 each. ages 4-8
  (PUBLISHER: August House Story Cove (Atlanta Ga.:), PUBLISHED: 2006.)
  
  
  Professional Recommendation/Review #2:
  Children’s Book Council
  In this delightful Russian folktale about perseverance and survival, two frog sisters learn the truth of that old saying “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over,” and “the opera isn’t over until the fat frog sinks.”
  
  Response to Two Professional Reviews:
  The first review does not say much about this book overall, but as a whole they state that Story Cove is charming and colorful and teaches many lessons. I agree because I think that this is a silly way to teach young readers to never give up. The second review and I both use the term “perseverance,” which I believe to be a powerful lesson that every child should learn.
  
  Evaluation of Literary Elements:
  The element that makes this a fable is the story’s lesson. As I mentioned above, the lesson of this story is to never give up no matter what. I think using frogs as characters, who get stuck in butter is a light way to teach such a heavy lesson to young children. Also, readers with siblings can relate to the characters’ conflicting personalities.
  
  Consideration of Instructional Application:
  In my classroom, I would use this book to teach my students to never give up by reading it to them in a read aloud. An activity to support this would be to have my students write about a time where things got difficult, but they never gave up. I would then have them share with the class their experiences with perseverance.