Why Mole Shouted and Other StoriesOnce there was a Mole who lived with his Grandmother Mole in a hole in the forest, and most of the time they got on well enough...But see what happens when Mole loses his glasses, doesn't zip his jacket, shouts, and keeps asking why. What is a Grandmother Mole to do except kiss him on his nose? Why Mole Shouted There once was a Mole who lived with his Grandmother Mole and she loved her Mole very dearly except when he shouted. One day he started shouting and he shouted and shouted and wouldn’t stop. “Please don’t shout like that!” she told him. “Aooooooooooooooo!” shouted Mole. Grandmother Mole covered her head with her paws but Mole kept shouting and shouting. “Aoooooooooo!” he shouted. “A00000000000, AOOOOOOOO and aooooooooooooo!” and he would not and would not stop. “Why are you making such a terrible noise ?” his grandmother asked him. “Why? WHY, WHY?” “AOOOOOOOOOOO!” answered Mole at the top of his voice. “I’ll make you a deal,” his Grandmother Mole said to him. “If I guess the reason why you are shouting, will you promise to stop?”. “O.K., ” agreed Mole. “O.K., ” said Grandmother Mole. “Are you shouting because you are hungry?” “Aooooooooooooooooo!” shouted Mole. So that wasn’t it . “Thirsty?“ Grandmother Mole asked him. “Aooooooooooooooooo!” “You’re not thirsty. Sleepy?” “Aooooooooooooooooo!” “Not sleepy. Is it that you are a sad Mole today?” “Aooooooooooooooooo!” No. Mole wasn’t hungry or thirsty. He wasn’t sleepy. He was not sad. “I know,” Mole’s Grandmother Mole said. “You mean ‘Notice me!’” “Aooo.......” began Mole, but he was thinking about it. “A o ?” he asked himself. “Oh!” he told himself and stopped shouting. ______________________________________________________ Parents' Choice Gold Award Parents' Choice Foundation Why Mole Shouted and Other Stories Summer 2004 Picture Books Ages: 4 - 8 yrs. Author: Lore Segal Illustrator: Sergio Ruzzier Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux ISBN: 0-374-38417-7 Hardcover Price: $16.00 Review: This read aloud, four stories in one book, about a mole who lives with his grandmother is a sweet unassuming masterpeice. The relationship between adult and child is endearing as any in children’s literature. The two get on quite nicely even when Mole looses his much needed glasses, shouts loudly and frequently asks “Why?” again and again and again and again. Even then, Grandmother leans down and kisses him on the nose. When he is outside she gives him a wooly scarf to wrap around his throat, makes sure he has his mittens, and that his cap is pulled down over the place his ears would have been if he had ears outside. As cold as it is, he is building a snowmole. In the house, Grandmother buttons her wooly sweater all the way up, and puts another log on the fire. Illustrator Sergio Ruzzier shows us a picture of her waiting there. The artist’s tempo is simple. His muted colors are gentle. No line is wasted. All quietly convey an extraordinary relationship that he skillfully makes appear ordinary. Diana Huss Green ©2004 Parents' Choice Amazon.com http:/ |
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