Rating: 
Summary: Classics for Children
Review: I've told my children that when yard sale time comes around, Frog and Toad books stay. I'm holding them for the grandchildren. The Frog and Toad books have held up well - my oldest 'child' is 32, my youngest not yet 9, and everyone has heard Frog and Toad stories over and over.This book, published in 1970, is the first of four. The two friends are somewhat like the Odd Couple, two best friends with distinctly different personalities. Frog is usually cheerful, while Toad tends to view things from a darker side. In "Spring", Frog convinces Toad that Spring really is here, that it is worth it to get out of the bed where Toad's been lying for so long his calendar still says November. In "The Story", Toad (who isn't quite as much a creative thinker as Frog) struggles to think up a story to cheer up his ailing friend - he struggles so hard that Frog ends up comforting him! "A Lost Button" is an amusing story about a search for (you guessed it) a lost button - Toad's lost his button, and Frog spends his time looking for it - they find many buttons, but not the one Toad's looking for, which turns up back at Toad's house. He reward his friend by sewing him a special jacket filled with all the buttons. In "A Swim", the self-conscious Toad tries to hide while putting on his swim suit, but ends up being seen by everyone, wearing his funny striped suit. Even Frog laughs at him - but he manages to walk home with dignity. "The Letter" is the last story in this book. Like many little children, Toad loves getting letters but is really sad because nobody writes to him. Frog comes to the rescue, eventually, with the help of a turtle mail carrier. The stories are short, sweet and about friendship, but in a simple manner. Drawings of Frog and Toad are on almost every page, and are detailed enough to warrant a lengthy view and some comments from young readers. The words are understandable and readable enough for very young readers, yet they manage to hold a story with an amusing message.
Rating:
Summary: Great For a first time reader!
Review: My 6 year old loves this book! 5 wonderful storys! Every time we read it he wants me to send him a letter so he can get mail like frog and toad! I read these books when I was a very small child so its wonderful being able to read these books to my step-son! Great book!
Rating:
Summary: Favorite with the Kids
Review: My children have enjoyed this book very much when they were around nine years old. It's a charming tale told from an animalistic view.
Rating:
Summary: Kiddy Book
Review: My daughter read this to me over the course of a week. It is an excellent book if you have a young reader.
Rating:
Summary: A book every child (of any age) should read!
Review: Of all the books I read or had read to me as a child, the assorted adventures of Frog and Toad stand out in my mind. Simple tales of deep meaning imparting much truth about friendship and personal relationships. No one can go wrong with Froga and Toad.
Rating:
Summary: Friendship. Just the perfect blendship.
Review: Recently I had the exceedingly wonderful chance to see the new musical of "Frog and Toad" at the Minneapolis Children's Company. A fabulous production in and of itself, it got me to thinking about the original books on which the musical is based. Like many children I was raised on such books as the lovely, "Frog and Toad Are Friends" and I've remembered some of the stories fairly well. It's amazing to me that Arnold Lobel was able to write stories that are patient simple without ever being dull or pedantic. These stories are clear and concise and unaccountably lovely. For your average early reader I not only recommend, "Frog and Toad Are Friends" but I recommend it to the reader's parents, grandparents, school crossing guards, dentists, air traffic controllers, and anybody else who might just happen to be able to speak the English language.
In "Frog and Toad Are Friends" the book consists of roughly five short stories. The first is one of my favorites. In it, Frog has decided to wake Toad from his hibernation and introduce him to the new spring. Toad's response is, "Blah". Frog tries a number of different methods of luring his friend into the warm beautiful day, the most touching of which is his simple argument, "But, Toad, I will be lonely". Frog's eventual solution is to fast-forward Toad's calendar a little, making it instantly May. Toad is a little shocked at the date but he's happy to see the spring weather. In the second tale, Frog is sick and Toad attempts to take care of him. His different methods of coming up with a story to tell his friend inevitably lead to his own illness, however, and soon it is Frog telling Toad a story instead. The story "A Lost Button" shows Frog and Toad out looking for one of Toad's lost buttons. They find a variety of them but none are Toad's. He walks off in a huff only to find the missing item on his living room floor. Feeling guilty about yelling at his best friend he sews all the buttons onto his jacket and then gives it as a gift to Frog. The next story is an atypical tale, mostly because it doesn't end with a preachy moral (not that Lobel's stories tend to, but this one was ripe for it). In it, Frog and Toad go swimming. Frog prefers to swim au naturale but Toad has a fastidious bathing suit that he is certain everyone will laugh at. After the two swim Toad refuses to get out of the water until the crowd that has gathered at the water's edge to see his suit disperse. They don't and Toad reveals a suit that was probably in style in 1923. Even Frog laughs too. Finally, in the last story Toad mentions to Frog that he is unhappy because he never gets letters. Frog writes him one but delivers it via their friend Snail (a character that in the play version of this tale says that he, "Puts the go in escargot"). The two wait and long before the snail arrives Frog tells Toad what is in the letter so that the two are better friends for it. Three days later, Toad is happy to receive his message.
This particular collection of Frog & Toad tales doesn't contain ALL the classics. You will not find the cookie eating tale here, nor the story about Toad dreaming about Frog growing smaller and smaller. Still, this is an excellent collection. I guess I never really noticed the subtlety of Lobel's illustrations. When you think of "Frog and Toad" you think of their realistic eyes and bodies. You think of their tweed jackets and elegant striped pants. What you may not think of is their capacity for subtle expressions. The image of Toad walking in his bathing suit, head held high, away from his fellow animals by the river is worth the price of admission alone. Ditto the shot of Toad clutching his aching noggin after ramming it into a wall.
I can't really stress the simple elegance of "Frog and Toad" to you if you haven't read them before. Needless to say, you won't even mind the fact that not a character in any of these tales ever uses a contraction. It's sometimes near impossible to write really good early reader books. I think Arnold Lobel set the bar way too high when he penned these extraordinary tales. If you've never read them, you are seriously missing out.
Rating:
Summary: Friendship. Just the perfect blendship.
Review: Recently I had the exceedingly wonderful chance to see the new musical of "A Year With Frog and Toad" at the Minneapolis Children's Company. A fabulous production in and of itself, it got me to thinking about the original books on which the musical is based. Like many children I was raised on such books as the lovely, "Frog and Toad Are Friends" and I've remembered some of the stories fairly well. It's amazing to me that Arnold Lobel was able to write stories that are patient simple without ever being dull or pedantic. These stories are clear and concise and unaccountably lovely. For your average early reader I not only recommend, "Frog and Toad Are Friends" but I recommend it to the reader's parents, grandparents, school crossing guards, dentists, air traffic controllers, and anybody else who might just happen to be able to speak the English language.
In "Frog and Toad Are Friends" the book consists of roughly five short stories. The first is one of my favorites. In it, Frog has decided to wake Toad from his hibernation and introduce him to the new spring. Toad's response is, "Blah". Frog tries a number of different methods of luring his friend into the warm beautiful day, the most touching of which is his simple argument, "But, Toad, I will be lonely". Frog's eventual solution is to fast-forward Toad's calendar a little, making it instantly May. Toad is a little shocked at the date but he's happy to see the spring weather. In the second tale, Frog is sick and Toad attempts to take care of him. His different methods of coming up with a story to tell his friend inevitably lead to his own illness, however, and soon it is Frog telling Toad a story instead. The story "A Lost Button" shows Frog and Toad out looking for Toad's lost button. They find a variety of them but none are Toad's. He walks off in a huff only to find the missing item on his living room floor. Feeling guilty about yelling at his best friend he sews all the buttons onto his jacket and then gives it as a gift to Frog. The next story is an atypical tale, mostly because it doesn't end with a preachy moral (not that Lobel's stories tend to, but this one was ripe for it). In it, Frog and Toad go swimming. Frog prefers to swim au naturale but Toad has a fastidious bathing suit that he is certain everyone will laugh at. After the two swim Toad refuses to get out of the water until the crowd that has gathered at the water's edge to see his suit disperse. They don't and Toad reveals a suit that was probably in style in 1923. Even Frog laughs too. Finally, in the last story Toad mentions to Frog that he is unhappy because he never gets letters. Frog writes him one but delivers it via their friend Snail (a character that in the play version of this tale says that he, "Puts the go in escargot"). The two wait and long before the snail arrives Frog tells Toad what is in the letter so that the two are better friends for it. Three days later, Toad is happy to receive his message.
This particular collection of Frog & Toad tales doesn't contain ALL the classics. You will not find the cookie eating tale here, nor the story about Toad dreaming about Frog growing smaller and smaller. Still, this is an excellent collection. I guess I never really noticed the subtlety of Lobel's illustrations. When you think of "Frog and Toad" you think of their realistic eyes and bodies. You think of their tweed jackets and elegant striped pants. What you may not think of is their capacity for subtle expressions. The image of Toad walking in his bathing suit, head held high, away from his fellow animals by the river is worth the price of admission alone. Ditto the shot of Toad clutching his aching noggin after ramming it into a wall.
I can't really stress the simple elegance of "Frog and Toad" to you if you haven't read them before. Needless to say, you won't even mind the fact that not a character in any of these tales ever uses a contraction. It's sometimes near impossible to write really good early reader books. I think Arnold Lobel set the bar way too high when he penned these extraordinary tales. If you've never read them, you are seriously missing out.
Rating:
Summary: Book+cassette great for non-readers
Review: Santa brought the book+cassette version of Frog and Toad to our 3 year old for Christmas and she has already listened to it about 20 times. (Although the package says it's for ages 6 to 9, frankly, I think it would be too babyish for kids that old.) Listening to the cassette is perfect for pre-readers and it will help develop aural skills too -- a quality sorely lacking in our visual culture. The audio version is read by the author. He does a good job of making it lively to listen to. The use of music adds to the aural experience for kids. I am now on the search for more of these book/cassette combos because they provide Mommy and Daddy with a few minutes of peace with a simple, but educational, activity that our VERY busy 3 year old can do on her own.
Rating:
Summary: My Son was Cracking Up!
Review: The "Frog and Toad" series are perfect books for beginning readers. My 6 yo son reads them to me, and laughs at all the funny illustrations. I remember my mother reading them to me when I was little. The nice thing about them is they are unlike the typical early reader fare in that they are funny and interesting enough to entertain the parent who is listening to them being read. Definitely a book worth owning.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Books for Children
Review: The "Frog and Toad" series have been around now for several decades. Each book contains several stories of the many adventures Frog and Toad have together. The age group recommended for the series is 4-8, but I think 8 is bit optimistic. The books are more appropriate for the 5 and 6 year olds. I read all these books to my children, and the Frog and Toad series were, in fact, some of the very first books they read by themselves. The language used is uniform and appropriate for the age group specified, and each story had a simple truth to it. On top of all this, the Frog and Toad books have always been wonderful value as well.
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