Product Description

This book contains fourteen stories that are very short and very sly, very amusing, and very appealing. Each is told in four lines and four panels, with the turn of the page starting a new one. Sure to bring giggles from children and knowing smiles from adult readers, the quirky cast of characters includes terrible Teresa the teaser, a canine contestant in a dog show who really looks more like a cat, and a boy named Fred who never wants to go to bed. Whimsy prevails in these stories, which are perfect for the busy parent of today's on-the-go youngsters. Lighthearted and larky, these will leave listeners begging for just one more.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #908506 in Books
• Published on: 1997-09-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 32 pages

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3. Combine the originality of Jon Scieszka and the wit of Jack Prelutsky with Maira Kalman's style of illustration and you might come up with something like this clever book. The "short stories" are actually four-line verses, each line of which serves as a caption for the four cartoons drawn in comic-book style across a double-page spread. For example, "The Wild West" consists of the rhyme: "A cowboy on his favorite horse/fell into the prickly gorse./Some things he said were very coarse./Later on, he felt remorse." The well-drawn illustrations are full of zany details and make the meanings of unfamiliar words abundantly clear. Read aloud or alone, this book provides enjoyment for a wide audience. But it is more than that. It is a good model for classroom writing experiences and painlessly adds to readers' vocabularies. There is sure appeal here, especially for the "I don't like to read" crowd. An original, refreshing, and useful offering.?Marlene Gawron, Orange County Library, Orlando, FL
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
A preschool short-story collection is an unlikely concept, but newcomer Cuetara comes up with some classic two-page, four- frame tales. There's Fred, who hates to go to bed, ``hides out in the shed/and stays awake instead,'' and Terrible Teresa (``Did you pull the kitty's tail?/You must go to baby jail!''--a playpen). Each rhyme is illustrated with four gregarious scenes, borrowing energy from comic-book layouts but maintaining the look of a picture book. The stories are independent, but all feature the antics of various kids and animals that populate most readers' worlds. Although the book is aimed at preschoolers, first-graders and other emerging readers will get a kick out of using their new skills to unravel the rhymes of these silly tales. (Picture book. 3-7) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review
Mittie Cuetara's drawings suggest what New Yorker cartoons for children might be like. (Ages 2 to 5) -- The New York Times Book Review, Erin St. John Kelly

Customer Reviews

Terrible Teresa and Other Very Short Stories
My four year old daughter loves this book! For her it has become such a favorite that she has memorized each short rhyming story and she can recite them to us. This is the first step toward reading on her own.