Some bears will go to any length to get some honey. This one recruits every animal that comes along to form, well, a stack. The result? Tail of the duck to the gluteus maximus of the duck-billed platypus (with many other rears in between). Readers will giggle with delight at the bird's eye view of some hysterical animal bottoms. Follow this back-sided journey up the tree - where the real surprise awaits. The pairing of Black's minimal text with Hawkes's visual story line will keep you chuckling from the bottom up.
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Book Description
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
A bear's inspired idea to create a tower of animals in order to reach some honey is all the premise that Hawkes (Library Lion) and debut author Black need to launch an encyclopedia of animal posteriors. As the tower grows, readers learn that, in Hawkes and Black's alternative universe, a duck's rear end may be a tail, but a moose has a caboose, a turkey has a tushy, and a toucan a can. Hawkes's cast runs the gamut of goofy expressions; this smorgasbord of demeanors, coupled with the sheer improbability of the tower (the rhinoceros and giraffe are stacked upside-down on top of a very spindly flamingo), make this a surefire crowd-pleaser. The tower is finally undone by the stinger on a bumblebee, but not before readers' vocabularies have been boosted by 16 ways to refer to buttocks. And if that's not an example of literature enriching our lives, what is? Ages 3–7. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 1—As every parent and teacher knows, little kids giggle over rear ends-and Chicken Cheeks is sure to keep them laughing. It features the hind quarters of animals, complete with silly names for them, from beginning to—well—end: "rhinoceros rump," "penguin patootie," "polar bear derriere," "turkey tushy." The close-up, color-saturated illustrations—which are at the same time obviously hilarious and sneakily deadpan—tell a story. A brown bear stands poised atop a ladder, gazing thoughtfully up the skinny trunk of a tall, branch-free tree. He grabs a duck and sets it on his head. As he does, readers get an eyeful of the duck's rear; the accompanying text merely says "duck tail." Somehow a huge moose finds itself perched on top of the duck's head: "moose caboose." When a chicken precariously clasps the moose's antlers and proceeds to lay an egg on its nose, only the bear is smiling. Credibility is suspended by the time the moose sits on the duck without squashing it. Sixteen animals later, children can only laugh helplessly at the absurd ladder of animals balanced parallel to the tree trunk. By then they're able to see what the bear was trying to do-and how it backfires. Filled with visual jokes and amusing details, Chicken Cheeks is a lot more than a list of words for kids to snicker at.—Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I teach Kindergarten and my class LOVED this book. I used it to reinforce several concepts: 1) initial consonant sounds, 2) rhyming pairs, and 3) synonyms. My students are used to the phrase, "Criss-cross applesauce" which basically translates to "sit down with your legs crossed." Chicken Cheeks gave us a multitude of ways of saying this phrase and now, instead of saying "Criss-cross applesauce," I might say, "Sit on your toucan can" and someone might yell out "or your bumblebee bum" and then someone else may yell out, "sit on your deer rear." It brings a giggle and a smile to EVERYONE'S face as all the children quickly sit down and chime in with their own version of 'criss-cross applesauce.' What a wonderful way for English Learners to incorporate and learn language, not to mention, what F-U-N! I say this is THE book for everyone. Sure, it is a bit, shall we say, "out there" but hey! Tongue-in-cheek, errr...beak-in-cheek aside...it is a darling book must-have for any early elementary teacher's library and school library. *I purchased a copy for my school library and my librarian LOVES it.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By C. Thorpe
Format:Hardcover
It's a fun book. Kids of a particular age love that part of the body. The illustrations are fun, and the "plot" is clever enough.
I give it 3 stars because there just isn't that much intellectual content, and even young kids can enjoy books with something more than a bunch of smelly animals' rear ends on top of each other. (At least he didn't include a donkey's, well, you know...) I found it clever but just not enough words to be memorable.
My favorites were Dr. Seuss, Wanda Gág, Eric Carle, Richard Scarry, Angela Banner, not to mention Edward Lear thrown in for good measure. "Dare I err" on the side of overly critical? I think they had a lot more going on than this book. That said, lest I rumple any feathers, I will buttress the book's reputation if I can - the illustrations are of a rear quality and I could definitely be behind the decision to grab it.
I give it 3 stars because there just isn't that much intellectual content, and even young kids can enjoy books with something more than a bunch of smelly animals' rear ends on top of each other. (At least he didn't include a donkey's, well, you know...) I found it clever but just not enough words to be memorable.
My favorites were Dr. Seuss, Wanda Gág, Eric Carle, Richard Scarry, Angela Banner, not to mention Edward Lear thrown in for good measure. "Dare I err" on the side of overly critical? I think they had a lot more going on than this book. That said, lest I rumple any feathers, I will buttress the book's reputation if I can - the illustrations are of a rear quality and I could definitely be behind the decision to grab it.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
Two things save this book from being a complete waste of time:
1) The illustrations are GREAT! I mean they are 90% of the book so if they weren't great I'm sure this book never would have been published.
2) Kids love butts (or bums, rears, etc.)! At least mine do. They think they are hilarious and this taps into that in a harmless way.
I can't proclaim this to be the best book, or even a book for everyone, but it is cute. You can read the book in about 2 minutes though so it gets old fast - but here's a tip: Look for the ants on every page. There are 2 of them on each page (except for the first page and one other). The ants end up winning out in this story and you have to look closely to find out how. That makes the book "last" a little longer.
Don't look for any profound messages here...just enjoy the silliness!
1) The illustrations are GREAT! I mean they are 90% of the book so if they weren't great I'm sure this book never would have been published.
2) Kids love butts (or bums, rears, etc.)! At least mine do. They think they are hilarious and this taps into that in a harmless way.
I can't proclaim this to be the best book, or even a book for everyone, but it is cute. You can read the book in about 2 minutes though so it gets old fast - but here's a tip: Look for the ants on every page. There are 2 of them on each page (except for the first page and one other). The ants end up winning out in this story and you have to look closely to find out how. That makes the book "last" a little longer.
Don't look for any profound messages here...just enjoy the silliness!
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Cheeky Humor
A fellow Media Specialist first introduced me to this book. Having 22 years experience in Early Childhood Education, I knew it would be a hit. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Beth Youngblood
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kids love butt jokes - they'll love this book!
I'm a huge fan of Michael Ian Black as a comedian so I snatched this book up for my niece as soon as it came out. It's an adorable book with euphemisms for animal's butts. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Katy
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of our favorite books!
It is a fun book and simple enough that my three year old could easily memorize it and read it to himself or to us. It is laugh out loud funny to hear a child read it. Read more
Published 6 months ago by d&j
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chicken Cheeks Fever
I teach four and five year old children in the inner city of our town. These children are from some of the most improvished homes in our area. Read more
Published 8 months ago by superteachmama
5.0 out of 5 stars
My Kinder Kids Loved It
This book is a favorite in my kindergarten class and they asked me to read it for them all the time. I'd recommend it for ages seven and under. Read more
Published on April 13, 2011 by Jenna
4.0 out of 5 stars
Perennial library favorite
We take this book out from the library every few months, and it's always a favorite.
Now, I *will* say that it's a short book, not much story. Read more
Now, I *will* say that it's a short book, not much story. Read more
Published on January 17, 2011 by Ulyyf
5.0 out of 5 stars
Makes you Giggle!
One of our favorite books- illustrations are too cute and I never knew there were so many different ways to refer to the "backside."
Published on September 5, 2010 by Kapers4
4.0 out of 5 stars
Funny children's book....more appropriate for home then school.
This book has excellent illustrations and the very simple story line is fun to follow. I think that this book can be loved by children and adults but probably is a good book for... Read more
Published on January 10, 2010 by Mitchell Klooster
4.0 out of 5 stars
The butt of laughs for children.
As I have mentioned before, I truly believe that Michael Ian Black is a better writer than he is a comedic actor. In fact I am not surprised that he would write a childrens book. Read more
Published on November 30, 2009 by Stephanie Travitsky
5.0 out of 5 stars
...butt you must read this!
Who knew that animal rear ends could be so much fun?! A simple tale of stacking tails with a very moving ending. Read more
Published on November 1, 2009 by Kathleen S. Kennedy
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