Tale of a Tail

Oooh, the illustrations in this book. They are just delicious. The story is great -- terrific characters, and very easy to relate to. And in the end, the bear has a full tummy and goes to bed, but not before he writes a thank-you note! Find a copy of this one and devour it with your children. It is a keeper. I should mention that my husband does not like the gulping sounds the animals make (such as "hom hom" and "hop la")-- he doesn't like to read them aloud. But they are Hungarian, I suppose, so on with the show! We love it.

Tale of Tails is a clever play on words. It is a fun story about a fox who uses his tail to catch much desired fish. His friend, Bear wants some, but fox is too greedy to share and told Bear about his fishing method--to use his tale. Well, the fun of the story is what happens next. It is well written, and cleverly illustrated.

I was delighted to discover this book while volunteering at my son's school library. After renewing Tale of a Tail from the library twice, I decided we needed to own it for our own home collection. This story is new to those of us in the West, but it has all the elements of a classic (and is, in fact, an old Hungarian fable.) The story of Tale of a Tail has a wonderful and surprising twist that makes it an enjoyable read for parents as well as children. The artwork in the illustrations is gorgeous; I am surprised this book did not win a Caldecott award. This book earns the highest recommendation of our family!!!

Judit Bodnar's rollicking tale of tables turned & turned again, in a funny & Aesopian tall tale, is wonderfully endowed by John Sandford's awesome artistry of life in an amazingly enchanted forest!Fox is a quick witted creature & soon catches himself a basketful of trout. Just as he's about to dig in to his huge supper, he hears a knocking at his door. It's Bear, drawn to his friend's home by the lovely fishy smell.Fox is not a polite neighbor & tells Bear to take a hike & when Bear persists, Fox thinks to give him a hard time by telling him how to fish for his own supper.Bear, being a bit of a bumbler, takes Fox's lesson to heart & sits for one miserably cold winter night with his tale stuck in a lake.In the morning, without catching one fish, Bear decides to go home. When he stands up he finds his tale frozen to the lake. With a mighty heave Bear pulls the whole lake out & staggers away, muttering at his Foxy friend.Naturally, the lake melts & Bear gets his own feast, beyond Fox's imaginings!A wonderful book to be read & re-read for the story & for the pictures!

My son was read this book in school and absolutely loved it! He's 7 years old and begged me for a copy of his own. He can't wait to receive it.