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Rick's Books |
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Summary:
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A bullfrog in the Old West loses his hop in this lively tale where each page must be turned to complete the previous image. |
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Blurb:
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It's about the worst thing that can happen to a bullfrog: he's lost his hop and doesn't know where to find it.
But when he begins to search for it, he discovers that nothing is what it seems.
He looks under a toad. But turn the page, and the toad turns out to be a toadstool. He looks under a dog. But turn the page, and the dog is really a doghouse. And so on, and so on, from a cow...boy to a stage...coach. Set in the Old West, the story takes the reader into every nook and cranny that compound words can offer. Will the bullfrog ever find his hop? Turn the page and find out! Rick Walton and Greg Hally have created a page-turner, in the truest sense of the word. It's a rollicking story that begs to be read again and again. |
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Awards:
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1995 CBS This Morning Christmas Pick.
Utah Children's Book Award Nominee 1996-97. Nebraska Golden Sower Award Nominee 1996-97. Maryland Children's Book Award Nominee 1996-97. |
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Reviews:
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"clever design...amusing tale....In addition to the obvious tie with lessons on compound words, this could
be used to inspire students to do some creative writing of their own." --
Booklist.
"Really fun...a real surprise for children...they get to know it and they can't wait to read it aloud to you." --Valerie Lewis of Lewis Reviews, on CBS This Morning , December 14, 1995. "the story takes the reader into every nook and cranny that compound words can offer. A real page-turner." --Janet Hatch in The Salt Lake Tribune , August 23, 1996. "The frog lost his hop and he didn't like it. He looked and looked for it. Frog said, 'Maybe someone could throw me.' A cow...boy threw him. Then a snake scared him and he jumped over a sun...flower. After all this, he was so hungry he ate a horse...fly. I loved the book, and all the things the frog did."--Angelica Lopez, second grade, Ruth Grimes Elementary School, Colton California in the San Bernadino County Sun , December 12, 1998. |
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Dedication:
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To Carolee and Terry Ferris and all their little hoppers. |
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Author Bio:
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Rick Walton is the author of nineteen joke books and four other picture books. He, his wife and three sons live in Provo, Utah, where he spends his time playing the guitar, reading, taking walks, taking naps, writing for children, and just being hoppy. |
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Rick's Notes:
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I'd wanted to do a book that played with compound words for many years, but when I saw a stand-up comedian, Wendy
Liebman, on TV, I knew how I wanted to do the book. Wendy's humor revolves around her frequently stopping in the
middle of an idea, then continuing and turning upside-down what you thought she was going to say. That's what I
decided to do with Bull...frog.
The first draft of Bull...frog went all over the place, even into space. When Gibbs Smith expressed interest in it they suggested I make the plot a little more logical. I did. It ended up also becoming a story set in the old west, which was convenient, since Gibbs Smith publishes a lot of western americana. The only lines that stayed the same from the first draft to the last were the first two lines and the last two lines. One of my favorite school visit activities is to read Bull...frog and have all the kids shout out what comes next. My wife, Ann, knitted me a sweater with Bullfrog on the front. I sometimes wear it when I visit schools. Besides CBS This Morning , Once There Was a Bull...frog has also appeared on Storytime and Utah Living . |
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Rick answers questions about Once There Was a Bull...frog
Curriculum suggestions:
: Ways to use Once There Was a Bull...frog in your classroom, ideas for enrichment, and just general fun activities.
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