Frog and Toad All Year

Frog and Toad All Year is an American picture book written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel, published by Harper & Row in 1976.[1] It is the third book in the Frog and Toad series, whose four books completed by Lobel comprise five easy-to-read short stories each.

Frog and Toad All Year

First edition
Author	Arnold Lobel
Illustrator	Lobel
Country	United States
Series	Frog and Toad
Subject	Friendship[1]
Genre	Children's picture book, short story collection
Publisher	Harper & Row (I Can Read)
Publication date	August 1, 1976[2]
Pages	64 pp.
ISBN	9780060239503
OCLC	873644795
LC Class	PZ7.L7795 Fq3[1]
Preceded by	Frog and Toad Together
Followed by	Days with Frog and Toad

Characters

The two friends, Frog and Toad, are portrayed by the author with human-like personalities and amphibian appearance. The situations in which they find themselves are a cross between the human and animal worlds.[3] Along with Lobel's other Frog and Toad books, Frog and Toad All Year is valued by experts in children's literature for its portrayal of the value of friendship.[4]

Summary

Friends Frog and Toad, who have quite different personalities,[5] have adventures through the seasons,[6]

Down the Hill

One winter day, Frog persuades a reluctant Toad to rise from his bed, and join him in downhill sledding. As they sled, Frog falls off partway downhill, leaving Toad to unknowingly fend for himself the remainder of the way. Although he initially manages well, he crashes upon realizing he's alone. Although Frog is impressed with Toad's efforts, Toad decides he still prefers to spend winter in bed.

The Corner

During a rainy Spring morning, Frog tells Toad a story about how, one grey morning, when he was very young, his father told him Spring was right around the corner, prompting Frog to go searching around various corners. Young Frog eventually found a sighting of Spring around the corner of his own house. After Frog finishes his story, the rain clears, and the two go around the corner of Frog's house to find that Spring again.

Ice Cream

One hot Summer day, Toad fetches two large chocolate ice cream cones for himself and Frog, but on his way back, it ends up melting all over him, blinding him, and making him appear monstrous. Frog hears about a scary brown creature approaching, but when he sees it, he realizes what's going on. Toad then falls into the pond which washes the ice cream off, and the two go for new ice cream cones.

The Surprise

After a blustery Autumn evening makes messes of leaves in both Frog's and Toad's yards, the two decide to surprise each other by unknowingly raking the other's leaves. After they do so, and start for home, another wind arrives, and undoes both of their efforts, prompting them both to decide to rake their own leaves the next day. However, they both sleep well that night pleased with their good deeds.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve night, Toad, who's clock is broken, becomes worried when Frog does not arrive as scheduled, for their Christmas Eve together. After considering some horrific possibilities of why Frog is late, Toad starts to launch a rescue mission, only for Frog to arrive safe and sound. He had simply taken some extra time to wrap a Christmas present for Toad. Toad opens his present, a new clock, and the two have a wonderful Christmas Eve. [7]

Adaptations

The book has been adapted as a musical, written by Willie and Robert Reale and entitled A Year with Frog and Toad, opened on Broadway, and was also performed by the Second Story Repertory,[8] by Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis, and by the Chicago Children's Theatre, among others.[9] The stories have also been produced as an audio book.

Education

Educational materials have been developed to accompany Frog and Toad All Year.[10]

Recognition

Frog and Toad All Year won a Christopher Award in 1977.[11][12] It is listed in the New York Times Parent's Guide to the Best Books for Children.[13]

Frog and Toad All Year (1976) "We miss some of the resonant psychological heft of this pair's previous experiences, but Frog and Toad can still transform the most ordinary seasonal activities into celebrations."[2]

References

1. "Library of Congress LCCN Permalink for 76002343". Lccn.loc.gov. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
2. Lobel, Arnold (1976-08-01). "FROG AND TOAD ALL YEAR by Arnold Lobel". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
3. Julia Mickenberg; Lynne Vallone (3 February 2011). The Oxford Handbook of Children's Literature. Oxford University Press. pp. 76–. ISBN 978-0-19-970191-9.
4. Anita Silvey. The Essential Guide to Children's Books and Their Creators. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. pp. 270–. ISBN 0-547-34889-4.
5. "Book Review: The Frog and Toad Series". Eye Level Books. 2010-01-28. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
6. "Frog and Toad All Year Book Review". Commonsensemedia.org. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-10-24. Retrieved 2013-11-14.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
8. Reed, Wendy (May 10, 2011). "Spend an Afternoon with Beloved Frog and Toad". Seattle Child. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012. Retrieved November 14, 2013.
9. "THEATER REVIEW: A Year with Frog and Toad, a musical from Chicago Children's Theatre (3 stars) - tribunedigital-chicagotribune". Articles.chicagotribune.com. 2013-10-13. Retrieved 2015-09-19.
10. Mary Bolte (1 February 2001). A Guide for Using Frog and Toad Are Friends in the Classroom. Teacher Created Resources. pp. 39–. ISBN 978-1-57690-640-8.
11. https://web.archive.org/web/20070206205139/http://www.bookhelpweb.com/awards/christopher/1970.htm. Archived from the original on February 6, 2007. Retrieved February 6, 2007. Missing or empty |title= (help)
12. Bernice E. Cullinan; Diane Goetz Person (2005). The Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature. A&C Black. pp. 495–. ISBN 978-0-8264-1778-7.
13. Eden Ross Lipson (2000). The New York Times Parent's Guide to the Best Books for Children. Three Rivers Press. pp. 400–. ISBN 978-0-8129-3018-4.

External links

• Arnold Lobel at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database