The Kindhearted Crocodile

March 11, 2013
In a quirky story first published in Italy in 2008, a crocodile longs to be a family pet. The crocodile’s hammy facial expressions and antics are worthy of Broadway, but his ferocious teeth make him an unlikely companion. One evening, “the kindly crocodile had a brilliant idea. He would sneak into a home through the pages of a lovely picture book. Inside the book he was just paper and paint.” The crocodile emerges from the pages of the book (cleverly, it’s the same book readers are holding) into a family room with clutter emphasized by chaotic, white scrawls. The crocodile goes about tidying, folding laundry, and preparing breakfast, only to slip back into the book before the puzzled family awakes. Ferrari’s raucous sketches channel Quentin Blake, with playful use of space and eruptions of color and collage elements. After the family uncovers the identity of its secret helper, Panzieri gives the story a tongue-in-cheek ending: the crocodile wins over the agitated parents by appealing to their adult sensibilities, “fix a very good cup of coffee for each of the grown-ups.” Ages 4–8.

March 1, 2013
A postmodern picture book with decidedly antiquated characterization, this Italian import may upend conventional wisdom about crocodiles, but it reinforces gender stereotypes. The titular kindhearted crocodile longs to be a pet but knows that families will fear him; they will want puppies, goldfish and the like. In a metafictive effort to overcome this obstacle, he sneaks into a family's home each night via the pages of a picture book (as it turns out, the very same one readers hold). While the family sleeps, it putters around the house tidying up, making breakfast and otherwise being kindhearted. The family, in turn, hides out to discover who is helping them each night, and the parents are alarmed to discover the crocodile. While the children want to keep the croc since they recognize it from their book, the "courageous father" pledges to fight it as the "frantic mother" shrieks and waves her arms about. Later, the couple has "a serious conversation," and the mother, "who appreciated help with dishes and laundry," sides with the children, though the father still harbors doubt. In the end, the crocodile convinces them to let him stay, brewing a pot of coffee to seal the deal. Lively illustrations evoking Quentin Blake's style enliven the story but don't help it overcome the text's tired gender construction. A paradoxically enjoyable and consternating metafictive read. (Picture book. 4-8)

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Starred review from March 1, 2013

PreS-Gr 2-This Italian import contains a smorgasbord of nods to children's literature. A kind crocodile longs to be a pet and have a home with a family. Sadly, he merely inhabits the eponymous picture book in the children's playroom. Pursuing his dream, he sneaks out beyond the confines of the book, and like the elves in the Grimms fairy tale, stealthily does all the housework. Nonetheless, he clearly perceives that families only want puppies and goldfish and each night slips back "between his covers." (Little does he know that Madame Louis Bodot's portrait hangs in this family's living room.) The multicolored crocodile crawls out into the night onto pages turned pitch black with white delicate curlicue lines outlining the furniture, reminiscent again of Tomi Ungerer's Crictor (HarperCollins, 1958). Masterful illustrations combine vibrant Jules Feiffer-like inkwork, acrylics, watercolor, bits and pieces of well-integrated colorful and printed papers, and even waxy crayon-layered rainbow textures. The tone is colloquial and the tale is recounted in a storyteller's oratorical voice, sometimes addressing readers personally. Children are brought into the family's decision making: Will they allow a crocodile in their home? Youngsters will delight in the drama and identify with everyone's point of view, including the father's, who "had as many doubts as the crocodile had teeth." This well-written, imaginative, and accessible narrative will surely inspire more storytelling from enchanted readers.-Sara Lissa Paulson, The American Sign Language and English Lower School, New York City

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