Author | Arnold Lobel (also illustrator) |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Genre | Children's picture book, short story collection |
Publisher | Harper & Row |
Published | 1970–1979 |
No. of books | 4 |
Frog and Toad is a series of easy-reader children's books, written and illustrated by American author Arnold Lobel.
Each book contains five simple, often humorous, sometimes poignant, short stories chronicling the exploits of an anthropomorphic frog and toad. The situations in which they find themselves are a cross between the human and animal worlds. [1] Some of their adventures include attempting to fly a kite, cleaning Toad's dirty house, and finding out different reasons for isolation.
Frog is taller with a green shade, and is more cheery and relaxed than Toad; Toad is shorter and stout with a brown shade, and while just as caring and friendly as Frog, is also the more serious and uptight of the duo.
When Lobel was sick and out of school for much of second grade, he kept himself busy by drawing. He used his animal drawings as a way of coping with the social insecurity of his return and to make friends. His books about animal friends, such as Frog and Toad, were drawn from these experiences. Lobel himself wrote, "Frog and Toad are really two aspects of myself." [2] In The New Yorker , his daughter Adrianne Lobel suggested "that there’s another dimension to the series’ sustained popularity. Frog and Toad are of the same sex, and they love each other." Lobel was a closeted gay man for much of his life; he came out to family four years following the publication of the first book of the series. [3]
In 2008, three of Arnold Lobel's uncolored, unpublished Frog and Toad books were discovered in an estate sale. They were consolidated into two books and colored by Lobel's daughter Adrianne Lobel. [8] They are written, illustrated, and delivered in a manner different from the original four books.
Frog and Toad is valued by experts in children's literature for its portrayal of the value of friendship. [9]
Frog and Toad are Friends was a Caldecott Honor Book, or runner-up for the annual American Library Association (ALA) Caldecott Medal, which recognizes children's picture book illustration. [10] In 2012, it was ranked number 15 among the "Top 100 Picture Books" in a survey published by School Library Journal . [11]
Frog and Toad Together was a Newbery Honor Book, which recognizes children's literature. [12]
Frog and Toad All Year won a Christopher Award in 1977 – one of five, at a time when books for young people was the only award category. [13] The awards recognize "media that 'affirm the highest values of the human spirit' ... Award winners encourage audiences to see the better side of human nature and motivate artists and the general public to use their best instincts on behalf of others." [14]
By 2023, internet users gave a following to Frog and Toad as part of a cottagecore trend. [15]
In the 1980s, Churchill Films produced 18-minute adaptations of the first two books using clay animation. [16] Both films were directed by John Clark Matthews, credited also as theme music composer and one principal animator. Frog and Toad were voiced by Will Ryan and Hal Smith respectively. [17] [18] Only Frog and Toad Are Friends was narrated by Lobel.[ citation needed ]Frog and Toad Are Friends was released on May 23, 1985; Frog and Toad Together on September 3, 1987.[ citation needed ] They were distributed to the home market only (direct-to-video).[ citation needed ]
The Frog and Toad books inspired a Broadway musical, A Year with Frog and Toad . The musical was commissioned by Lobel's daughter, Adrianne Lobel, played off-Broadway, and ran briefly on Broadway in 2003. It was nominated for three Tony Awards. Prior to this, the books had inspired a non-musical play, "Frog and Toad (Forever)" written by Y York, and performed at Seattle Children's Theatre in 1998 and First Stage Milwaukee in 1999.
An animated series based on the books premiered on Apple TV+ on April 28, 2023. It stars Nat Faxon as Frog and Kevin Michael Richardson as Toad. It also features Ron Funches, Fortune Feimster, Yvette Nicole Brown, Margaret Cho, Cole Escola, Tom Kenny and Aparna Nancherla. [19] A Christmas special was released on December 1, 2023. [20] The second season was released on May 31, 2024. [21]
Morris Gleitzman is a British-born Australian author of children's and young adult fiction. He has gained recognition for sparking an interest in AIDS in his controversial novel Two Weeks with the Queen (1990).
Arnold Stark Lobel was an American author of children's books, including the Frog and Toad series and Mouse Soup. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as Fables, a 1981 Caldecott Medal winner for best-illustrated U.S. picture book. Lobel also illustrated books by other writers, including Sam the Minuteman by Nathaniel Benchley.
Onion John is a novel by American writer Joseph Krumgold, published in 1959. It was the winner of the 1960 Newbery Medal. The story is set in 1950s New Jersey, and tells the story of 12-year-old Andy Rusch and his friendship with an eccentric hermit who lives on the outskirts of the small town of Serenity.
A Year With Frog and Toad is a musical written by brothers Robert (music) and Willie Reale, based on the Frog and Toad children's stories written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel. The musical follows the woodland adventures of two amphibious friends, a worrywart toad and a perky frog, with their assorted colorful hopping, crawling and flying companions, over the course of a year. The show broke new ground by bringing professional children's theatre to Broadway, sparking the interest of the age 3-to-10 set.
Fables is a children's picture book written and illustrated by American author Arnold Lobel. Released by Harper & Row in 1980, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1981.
Tuesday, written and illustrated by David Wiesner, is a 1991 wordless picture book published by Clarion Books. Tuesday received the 1992 Caldecott Medal for illustrations and was Wiesner's first of three Caldecott Medals that he has won during his career. Wiesner subsequently won the Caldecott Medal in 2002 for The Three Pigs, and the 2007 medal for Flotsam.
My Friend Rabbit is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Eric Rohmann and first published in 2002. The illustrations in the book earned Rohmann the Caldecott Medal in 2003. My Friend Rabbit was adapted into an animated television series in 2007.
The Children's Theatre Company (CTC) is a regional theater established in 1965 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in plays for families, young audiences and the very young. The theater is the largest theater for multigenerational audiences in the United States and is the recipient of 2003 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. The November 2, 2004, edition of Time magazine named the company as the top theater for children in the U.S.
Frog and Toad Are Friends is an American children's picture book, written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel and published by Harper & Row in 1970. It inaugurated the Frog and Toad series, whose four books each comprise five easy-to-read short stories.
Adrianne Lobel is an American scenic designer and producer for theatre, opera, and dance known for her "very daring and creative sets."
I Can Read! is a line of beginning reading books published by HarperCollins. The series is rated by level and is widely used to teach children to read English. The first book in the series was Else Holmelund Minarik's Little Bear, published in 1957, and subsequent notable titles have included Amelia Bedelia and Frog and Toad.
Christopher John Rocco, simply known as John Rocco is an American illustrator of book covers and children's books. He is best known for illustrating the covers of books in the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. He is the sole creator of some children's picture books.
Frog and Toad Together is an American fantasy adventure children's picture book, written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel and published by Harper & Row in 1972. It is the second book in the Frog and Toad series. Like each of the other books in the series, it contains five easy-to-read short stories.
Anita Lobel is a Polish-American illustrator of children's books, including On Market Street, written by her husband Arnold Lobel and a Caldecott Honor Book for illustration, A New Coat for Anna, Alison's Zinnia, and This Quiet Lady. One Lighthouse, One Moon, one of three books she created about her cat, Nini, is a New York Times Best Illustrated Book. Her childhood memoir, No Pretty Pictures, was a finalist for the National Book Award.
Frog and Toad All Year is an American picture book written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel, published by Harper & Row in 1976. It is the third book in the Frog and Toad series, whose four books completed by Lobel each comprises five easy-to-read short stories.
In the Small, Small Pond is a 1994 Caldecott Honor Book written and illustrated by Denise Fleming. It is the sequel to Fleming's In the Tall, Tall Grass (1991). In 2001, the film was adapted into an animated short narrated by Laura Dern and released by Weston Woods Studios, Inc.
El Deafo is a graphic novel written and illustrated by Cece Bell. The book is a loose autobiographical account of Bell's childhood and life with her deafness. The characters in the book are all anthropomorphic bunnies. Cece Bell, in an interview with the Horn Book Magazine, states "What are bunnies known for? Big ears; excellent hearing," rendering her choice of characters and their deafness ironic.
Sam and Dave Dig a Hole is a children’s book by author Mac Barnett and illustrator Jon Klassen. It was published by Candlewick in 2014 and was selected as a Caldecott Honor Book in 2015.
Arnold Lobel was a children's author and illustrator. He wrote:
Days With Frog and Toad is an American children's picture book, written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel and published by Harper & Row in 1979. It is the fourth and final book in the Frog and Toad series. Like the other three books, it comprises five easy-to-read short stories. It has received positive reviews, and it is used in classroom settings. It contains themes of friendship, adventure, and solitude.