Blog Entry #7

City dog, Country frog

Written by Mo Willems

Illustrated by Jon J. Muth

Hyperion Books for Children, 2010

51 pages

Fiction

            I chose this book because I thought it would be a good read for boys. It is a very sweet, simple book that focuses on friendship. It was spring time and City dog’s first day in the country, when he met Country frog. Country frog taught City dog some fun games. In summer, City dog ran to Country frog’s rock and taught him some City dog games. That fall, they played another game and remembered all of the fun they had in spring and summer. In winter, City dog went to meet Country frog at his rock and things took a turn that season. That next spring, City dog ended up making a brand new friend.

            The illustrations in city dog, country frog are a beautifully expressive style of painting. The medium is painting using watercolors. The colors chosen are naturalistic hues, because the setting is in nature. There is a lot of green, blue, brown, and grey in the spring time illustrations. In fall, there are warm hues of orange, yellow, and red. In winter, there are white, grey, and blue hues. Every illustration shows the beauty of the season and the feelings of City dog and Country frog.

            City dog, country frog is a very simple read and would be great for an early reader. This book would be more appropriate for kindergarten and first grade, but second graders may enjoy reading this too. This book would be great for a lesson on the seasons for a kindergarten class, because it takes you through every season from spring to spring the following year. The illustrations represent every season well and would be great for a discussion on how every season is different. Other topics that could be discussed from this book are friendship and emotions. This book has no awards or honors.