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Sunday, January 1, 2017

One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree, written by Daniel Bernstrom and illustrated by Brendan Wenzal. Harper, 2016. $21.99 ages 3 and up

""I'll bet," said the boy,
in the belly dark and deep,
"that you're still very hungry,
that there's more that you
can eat."
Slurp, buuuuurrrp! came a
belch from the leaves of the
tree. Oh! An ape eating
grapes, lounging like a queen."

Don't kids love books that pit someone small (like them) against a much bigger protagonist? Of course, they do! They are going to love listening to the luscious language that Daniel Bernstrom has penned to bring them this rhythmic tale of a snake, a boy, a toy and a ploy.

As he skips along under the shade of the eucalyptus tree, the boy is oblivious to the danger sheltered there. Too late to save himself, he is gobbled up by a huge, yellow snake. Both the boy and his toy, in fact! From inside the snake's dark belly, and undeterred by his predicament, the boy taunts the snake with the fact that he must still be hungry. After all, there is a lot of room in the snake's belly. Convinced to find more to satiate him, the snake goes on to eat a bird with a worm, a napping cat, a mossy sloth, a grape-eating ape, a vegetarian bear, a hive of bees, and perhaps just one more bite.

You know where this will end, don't you? And indeed, it does. The snake, full to bursting, can do nothing but belch his captive prey back out again!

Just listen to this language:

"Out whizzed the fly,
Out rolled the fruit,
Out buzzed the hive,
Out ran the bear,
Out swung the ape,
Out slunk the sloth,
Out  dashed the cat,
Out flew the bird,
Out slimed the worm.

And out skipped the boy
with his whirly-twirly toy."

A wonderful story of comeuppance, its pages filled with exquisitely executed digital images, this book is a WINNER! Don't miss the genuine pleasure of sharing it!  It is most assuredly a joyful experience.

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