CROCODILE! CROCODILE!
Stories Told Around the World
by Barbara Baumgartner & illustrated by Judy Moffatt
Six simple retellings, the title pair (familiar as Galdone's The Monkey and the Crocodile) from India plus a Native American tale and others from China, Puerto Rico, and Appalachia. Moffatt's eye-catching cut-paper art serves a dual purpose: Enclosed with the text within gaily patterned borders, it provides fresh, lively illustrations; it also demonstrates stick puppets, which the author describes in a note to parents as an effective way to engage children in the stories. Thus, while these easily read versions aren't the first choice for storytellers (Richard Chase's ``Sody Saleratus,'' for example, is richer), they are eminently suitable as starting points for children's own dramatizations. They also make appealing nursery tales. Useful and attractive. Source note. (Folklore/Picture book. 3-9)