Frog and Toad Collection

I wish Arnold Lobel had lived longer, we were robbed.

He wrote with a subtle literacy pedagogy. short words, minimal pronouns, no contractions. The content is emotionally rich yet humble.

These were the first favorites from my own childhood I picked out for my son when he was born and I’ve already had to tape them back together. I never tire of reading them.

“Blah,” said a voice from inside the house.

“Toad! Toad!” cried Frog. “The sun is shining! The snow is melting! Wake up!”

“I am not here,” said the voice.

Frog walked into the house. It was dark. All the shutters were closed. “Toad, where are you?” called Frog.

“Go away,” said the voice from a corner of the room. Toad was lying in bed. He had pulled all the covers over his head. Frog pushed Toad out of bed. He pushed him out of the house and onto the front porch. Toad blinked in the bright sun. “Help!” said Toad. “I cannot see anything.”

“Don’t be silly,” said Frog. “What you see is the clear warm light of April. And it means that we can begin a whole new year together, Toad.”