Stink and the Freaky Frog Freakout

trumang - Stink is really embarrassed. Even though he is really good at most things he tries, he is still in the Polliwog swimming class for little kids because he can't put his face underwater. All of the sudden, Stink starts seeing frogs everywhere. After a BLUE frog licks his arm he starts acting like a frog himself. He starts jumping around the house like a frog and sticking his tongue out to eat things. He starts to memorize frog calls and goes to a frog festival to learn more about them. The one good thing about thinking he is a frog is that he is finally able to put his head under water and gets to move on to the big kid swim class. I liked this book because it was fun learning facts about frogs and how they act. I just don't want to turn into a frog!!!

January 15, 2013
Stink Moody, younger brother of Judy, hops into the spotlight with a common problem--and one that's a bit more unusual. Stink would like to advance in his swimming lessons, but he's afraid to put his face underwater and seems doomed to remain a Polliwog forever. Fortunately, he's distracted from that issue by the sudden appearance around town--in some surprising places--of a whole lot of real frogs, a few of which are deformed. These frogs give McDonald the opportunity to offer a little information, through the voice of a nature-center guide, on how adverse environmental conditions can influence frog development. Stink memorizes a variety of frog sounds, enabling him to participate in a frog count at a local pond. Somehow, he becomes convinced that he's turning into a frog himself, but that might just make it possible for him to swim underwater. Brief, cheery, oversized text and lot of cartoonish black-and-white illustrations (only some of which were available for review) make this a good choice for newly independent readers. A minor issue is that the text informs readers that it is early spring; even in Virginia, that's a little early for Stink to be taking swimming lessons in an outdoor pool, as indicated in the illustrations. Young readers with a fondness for amphibians will jump all over this one. (Fiction. 6-8)

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