DOG ON A FROG?

In a delightfully ridiculous continuation to Frog on a Log? (2015), when the bossy, rhyming cat announces where everyone must sit, the frog asserts a change in the rules.

Picking up from the first book’s last page, in which an amiable-looking basset is sitting on a frog, the nervous frog yells “HEY, DOG! GET OFF THE FROG.” Once again the know-it-all cat appears, restating the rules: “Cats sit on mats, / frogs sit on logs, / and dogs sit on FROGS!” But the frog protests and revises the rules to say “Dogs sit on logs, / and cats sit on gnats.” “OUCH!” exclaims the shocked cat. And so begins another round of cleverly silly statements about the proper seating of an assortment of different animals, insects, and even some fantastical beings (“dragons will sit on wagons,” and “canaries will sit on fairies”). All are assigned rhyming seating locations by the frog, whose ultimate revenge is a very comfortable lounge chair. The previous book’s winning layout is repeated, with boldly colored, opaque backgrounds hosting a bunch of surprised- or distressed-looking cartoon animals atop their ludicrously assigned perches. The fun of matching a nonsensical rhyme for each character will have kids shrieking with laughter as each new illustration is viewed. And new readers will swiftly acclimate to the repetitive pattern and smart vocabulary.

A triumphant sequel.