Customer Reviews

Hokey Pokey: Another Prickly Love Story

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Lisa Wheeler offers young readers a sweet story about a hedgehog named Cushion and his desire to learn how to dance to impress his girlfriend, Barb. After seeking assistance from various neighboring animals, he fails to learn how to do the steps without stepping on their toes. Discouraged, Cushion almost gives up until he learns the biggest lesson of all: real friends help us even when we're not perfect.

The colorful illustrations by Janie Bynum add to the linguistic humor. This book is great not only for young readers, but also for English language students who wish to learn American idioms. It would be a great textbook for English language schools for its bright storyline and brilliant word plays. I highly recommend it!

Christine Louise Hohlbaum, author of Diary of a Mother and SAHM I Am: Tales of a Stay-at-Home Mom in Europe, lives near Munich, Germany, with her husband and two children. http://www.diaryofamother.com

This one's a lighthearted twirl around the dance floor with a love-struck porcupine, and we like it just fine around here.

Cushion loves Barb, a hedgehog (Barb, get it?), and Barb loves to dance. Cushion isn't exactly light on his feet. He takes lessons from various animals and fails at the foxtrot, funky chicken and bunny hop, but not before impaling his friends or leaving behind a few prickly souvenirs.

He despairs he'll ever impress Barb, until she sweeps him off his feet with a few heartfelt lessons on dancing and love. Gotta love those plucky types. Oh, the puns! Stop me, please.

The pastel art's about what you'd expect -- sunlit and sweet, with Cushion's quills expanding like a lion's mane as he trips over his two left paws.

What's best, I think, is how it appeals to a clumsy little kid. They're not too agile at this age -- remember that jumping, climbing and running are all recent accomplishments. Dancing, with its more precise movements, even when you're just rocking to a beat, must seem an Olympian feat.

So Cushion's an easy one for empathy as he bumbles his way about, makes a fool of himself and somehow still triumphs. We're not aiming for Fred Astaire here, just to keep putting one foot in front of the other. Most days, that's pretty cool by itself.

Cushion is a porcupine--and he is in love with Barb, who happens to be a hedgehog. But Barb is not just any hedgehog. She is a hedgehog who loves to dance. But Cushion has no talent in the dancing department. It doesn't matter how hard Cushion tries; he just can't get it right.

Tally-ho is a fox who attempts to teach Cushion to dance the fox trot, but Cushion steps on Tally-ho's tail. Then Clover the bunny tries to teach Cushion the bunny hop but he hops on Clover's foot. Biddy Hen tries to teach Cushion the funky chicken but his quills hit an unintended mark.

Will Cushion ever learn to dance? Maybe he hasn't the right teacher. Could Barb herself teach him to dance?

Armchair Interviews says: We love this silly and lively story about friendship. And the illustrations are colorful and oh so delightful. Children and adults alike will enjoy this story again and again.

This book along with the first book ~~ 'Porcupining' A Prickly Love Story are two of the BEST chilren's books by Lisa Wheeler..
I have purchased for myself (grandchildren) and both books for gifts to teachers friends and they love them..
We created 'song's to sing along and young children and a little older just love to sing!! I highly recommend these two books and the many other books by Lisa Wheeler.

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