A monster stalks the pond...or does it? After greeting friends Hedgehog, Badger, Rabbit and Mouse, Frog hops his way down to the pond. It’s getting dark so he needs his lantern to guide him. There he nearly runs into a huge, black Pond Monster (which even the youngest listener will be able to recognize as Frog’s shadow), and Frog hops away as fast as he can. One by one, his friends sneak down with him for a peek at the monster, making the shadow bigger and more ominous each time. It’s only when Mouse swims ahead that the others see a shadow and realize the source of their unfounded fears. The reiteration of the joke will wear thin by the end, although the repetition of sound effects and the refrain, “And the dark was all around,” provides a happy linguistic anchor for reading the tale aloud. Chapman’s animals pop with bold color and apt detail; Butler’s familiar fable is amiable but ultimately undistinguished. (Picture book. 3-6)
