Awful Ogre's Awful Day [Paperback]

Jack Prelutsky (Author), Paul O. Zelinsky (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 26, 2005 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

I'm an awful, awful ogre,

Absolutely awful ogre.

I'm so awful, Awful Ogre

Is my awful ogre name ...

Awful Ogre is huge, hungry, horrible –– and totally lovable. Larger than life, Awful Ogre packs into one day enough excitement, imagination, emotion, and sheer ebullience to last most of us a lifetime. In his awful, irresistible way, he steals the heart of every reader.

Ages 6+

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

How awful is this green-haired, one-eyed ogre? So awful his name is Awful Ogre. Fortunately, he takes some time out of his awfully busy ogre schedule to describe his routine, poem by poem, from the moment his pet rattlesnake awakens him to a touching bedtime scene--as rhythmic and tender as Goodnight Moon, but with scorpions and cacti. As it turns out, the ogre has many delightful hobbies, from dancing ("I dance with abandon, / Bravura, and zest, / I carom off boulders / And beat on my chest") to singing "stirring ogre melodies" to bone collecting to boasting to watching TV. He is particularly proud of his centuries-old garden:

Because of my ramshackle patches
Where scrofulous weeds rule unchecked,
I've earned from the trolls and the goblins
A measure of grudging respect.

Jack Prelutsky, creator of more than 30 books of verse, is clearly in his element here, though he claims that "Any resemblance between Awful Ogre and the poet is purely coincidental." And, Paul O. Zelinsky, who received the 1998 Caldecott Medal for Rapunzel explodes into zany genius in this gruesomely gorgeous picture book, perfect for any 8-year-old boy in the peak of his giddy gross-out phase. We could spend hours scouring the pages for tiny details, lovingly etched by Zelinsky, from a tiny protesting man in a fish food container next to a piranha to the artful steam above the ogre's bowl of scream of wheat. This book is a masterpiece. He may smell of weasel grease, drink gargoyle bile, eat scrambled legs, and grow carnivorous roses, but Awful Ogre is a friend your kids won't mind having. (Ages 6 and older) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

relutsky uncorks his latest collection of light verse, a divinely wretched celebration of subversity. Every detail of Awful Ogre's day offers possibility for gross-outs, from sunup ("I flick aside the lizard/ Clinging grimly to my chin,/ And now I feel I'm ready/ For my morning to begin") to sundown (a sly swat at Goodnight Moon as Awful Ogre drifts off to sleep with "Good night to furtive spiders/ That lurk in murky wells./ Good night to loathsome vermin/ With nauseating smells"). Whether he's writing a love letter to an ogress ("I long for the sight/ Of your craggy gray face,/ The might of your bone-breaking,/ Painful embrace") or puttering in the garden ("I'm growing carnivorous roses/ And oceans of overblown mold"), Awful Ogre proves an ideal agent for Prelutsky's oversize humor. Switching gears from the lushness of his Caldecott-winning Rapunzel, repeat collaborator Zelinsky presents Awful Ogre as a grotesque but goofy innocent, sillier than he is sinister. Awful may have only one eye and green hair, and a skunk might indeed curl up in his left nostril, yet he has a childlike sweetness as he dances (shown in a series of a dozen panels) or snuggles up in bed with his cactus. A virtuoso performance by two master funny-bone-ticklers. Ages 6-up.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Paperback: 40 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books (July 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060774592
• ISBN-13: 978-0060774592
• Product Dimensions: 11.8 x 9 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #212,819 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #33 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Sports & Activities > Humor > General
  • #45 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Literature > Poetry > Humorous

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fun, Fun!, November 30, 2001

By 

C.S. (Cleveland, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Awful Ogre's Awful Day (Hardcover)

What a terrific, fun, lively book! As much fun for me and my husband to read as it is for our son to have it read to him. Even though he is still small, he loves the rhyming cadence of it and the pictures. A nice change from Dr. Seuss - I just love Awful Ogre! Especially when he dances...or courts a grrrrl...or goes out to dinner...

This book would be a terrific addition to any childs library.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Expand Child's Vocabulary, November 1, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Awful Ogre's Awful Day (Hardcover)

This book has great illustrations, like the skunk in the Ogre's nose which captivated my 2 and 5 year old children. Even better however, it has the vocabulary to expand and challenge young minds. A great choice.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gross Fun For Your Favorite Kid, September 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Awful Ogre's Awful Day (Hardcover)

Prelutsky and Zelinsky invite you along to experience Awful Ogre's awful day in verse. The poems and illustrations are clever and at times tickle-your-funny-bone revolting. I personally love the ode to Awful Ogre's loved one. This book is especially great for any kid who had a fun time with the movie, "Shrek." The illustrations are full of humor that emphasize the silliness of the poems while relishing the good dirty fun to be had by all who turn the pages. Prelutsky is sure to inspire some fun poem writing while Zelinsky will encourage kids to have fun with their crayons. Expect this to be a favorite with your booger obsessed kid.