The book is a good easy read for children. It's about the life cycle of a Toad and what it does year round. It also talks about what happens during each season.
Age 3-5
Source: Steilacoom library

This is a very good book about the life of a toad. The text is written in verse and describes the physical changes and behaviors of a toad depending on the season -- Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Authentic illustrations.

The toad are small and often unseen by human eyes, but their world is rich and varied.
This book come from Pierce College
age 2

This is a fun little book about the seasons and life cycle of toads in poetry format. I enjoyed the book and thought the layout was well executed. The theme or overall point of the book is to explain the toad life cycle.

I liked the layout. I liked how the book included groupings of poems for the seasons. This allowed the reader to have an idea of passing time. Frequently, there was also natural history facts at the bottom of the page. The facts were usually relevant to the poem on the same page. For example, the "Tadpole's Surprises" poem is about a tadpole changes into a toad. The bottom of the page gives a fact about the eggs toads lay, and the developmental changes. The "Old Toad's Warning" poem is about toads crossing the road. The natural history fact underneath explains about toad migrations.

I also really enjoyed the illustrations accompanying the poems. They are well detailed painted illustrations. The bumps on the toads are so well detailed, it almost seems like I can feel the bumpy skin. The illustrations also have intricacies of the habitat. The lush fields, dew drops on lilly pads, ferns, and bees on flowers are just some of the included details. The texture of the paintings almost make these scenes lifelike. ( )

Poetry and natural history are cleverly blended together in this picture book by author Joanne Ryder. The poems follow the life cycle of a toad beginning with the first tadpoles of springtime. As the toadlets grow up, spring rains turn into sleepy summer days. When the days start to turn colder, the toads grow older; their smooth skin becomes bumpy. Soon it's time to prepare for winter hibernation and wait for spring again completing the cycle.

The Bottom Line: I picked this up for my annual poetry fix; April is National Poetry Month after all. I was pleasantly surprised to find that in addition to charming poems, readers are introduced to natural history. The book is divided up by seasons, making it easy to follow the toad's life cycle. Every page of poetry is illustrated with realistic watercolors by Maggie Kneen. Additionally, almost every page contains notes at the bottom with facts about the life of toads. Kids will love the short verses and illustrations; highly recommended for kids in grades 4 & 5.

This review also appears at the Mini Book Bytes Book Review Blog. ( )