A frog finds a beautiful flower and picks it for himself. When a mouse sees him with it, his jealousy overcomes him, and he swipes it. Frog’s friends come to his aid and chase the mouse away. But before the frogs can celebrate, Mouse’s friends return for a counter-attack. Before long the conflict has devolved into a full-scale frog-mouse war. By the end of it, all either side can ask is: why? This seemingly simple book tackles an important subject and will be an invaluable way to talk to young children about conflict and warfare.
Nikolai Popov is a well-known Russian visual artist and illustrator. He has won multiple gold medals and Grand Prix at international exhibitions of children’s book illustration. Popov has had personal exhibitions in many cities of the world, including Moscow, Tokyo, Rome and Venice. He is an honorary member of the Russian Academy of Arts.
Read Aloud Tips
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Have the students imagine that they were in the frog’s position; what would they do? How would they react? Do the same for the mouse. This is a good exercise to utilize small groups.
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Walk through the photos, asking students to describe what is happening and ask them what they think will happen next.
“Even the youngest reader will quickly grasp the point of Popov’s forceful allegory.” – Publisher’s Weekly