Hush! A Thai Lullaby [Paperback]

Minfong Ho (Author), Holly Meade (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2000 | Age Range: 4 and up

In an endearing lullaby, a mother asks a lizard, a monkey, and a water buffalo to be quiet and not disturb her sleeping baby.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-K?A mother, having just put her toddler to sleep, says "Hush!" to a succession of noises around her and finds out which animal is making each sound. Eventually, she hushes her whole environment and falls asleep as her baby awakens. Ho's rhymed, repetitive, onomatopoetic text employs the question-and-answer format of Bill Martin's classic Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Holt, 1967), creating a lullaby without music. The lilting sounds, variety of wildlife (monkeys, water buffalo, elephant, etc.), and illustrations firmly anchor this mood piece in northern Thailand. Pictures combine cut paper, ink line, and watercolor in a lush, yet successfully somnolent atmosphere of browns and greens. The art greatly amplifies the text with warmth and humor as the mother makes her rounds ensuring her child's peace. A delightful, reassuring bedtime book with a unique setting.?John Philbrook, San Francisco Public Library
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Ages 4^-8. A mother goes to each animal, from lizard to water buffalo to elephant, trying to quiet noises that might wake her child. When the animals are silenced and the mother finally falls asleep, the baby lies awake, with wide eyes and a smile. Ho's rhythmic text is fine for reading aloud: "Hush! Who's that leaping by the well? `OP-OP, OP-OP.' A bright green frog. Green frog, green frog, don't come leaping. Can't you see that Baby's sleeping?" The setting, apparently a remote Thai village, is gently evoked in cut paper and ink pictures that are bold enough to be used with groups. The unusual compositions are visually arresting, thanks, in part, to bright orange outlines, and the comforting earth tones suit the quiet nature of the story. Janice del Negro --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 4 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic; Reprint edition (March 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0531071669
• ISBN-13: 978-0531071663
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 8.2 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #135,881 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #40 in Books > Children's Books > Education & Reference > Business & Money

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Little baby, don't you cry. September 20, 2005

By E. R. Bird HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

I don't think you can truly understand the undercurrent of panic that runs beneath, "Hush: A Thai Lullaby" unless you've taken care of a sleeping baby sometime in your past. There comes a time when that sweet moment of pure uninterrupted silence is so golden, so impermanent and yet perfect, that you would gladly have conversations with any number of mosquitoes, mice, or monkeys just to sustain it. Such is the slightly panicked and oh-so-slightly fevered current of feeling running beneath Minfong Ho's 1997 Caldecott Honor winner. We've all read our share of lullaby books. Now let's read one that brings a share of interesting animals, rhythmic lyrics, and beautiful illustrations as well as a cultural background based in Thailand. Sound lovely? It is.

A Thai mother has just placed her sleeping child in a comfy hammock when she hears a mosquito crying in the wind. Softly, the mother whispers, "Mosquito, mosquito, don't come weeping. Can't you see that Baby's sleeping? Mosquito, mosquito, don't you cry, my baby's sleeping right nearby". Apparently this method of skeeter removal works, since we never hear from that bug again. But as soon as one critter quiets, another starts up a new racket. With the mosquito silent, a lizard pipes up. Then a cat, then a mouse, then a frog, then a pig, then a ... you get the picture. Each time someone new gives a cry, the mama sings her baby tune, unaware that her child has used her distraction to explore some parts of the house. By the end everyone is quiet and the mama is dozing as well. "Only Baby's wide awake, his eyes bright and round".

There are a couple nice little details in this work. First of all, I loved the new interpretations of animal sounds. Schoolchildren are usually taught that pigs say, "oink oink".... How much more interesting (and accurate), therefore, to have them say, "uut-uut, uut-uut". There's also the sense that the animals featured in this book are just your average everyday backyard creatures. This may be true in Thailand, where water buffalos and elephants aren't strangers, but for Western children such thoughts are intoxicating. Certainly there aren't that many Thai picture books out there, so it's nice to see such a rhythmic beauty as this gain a little spotlight. The words are actually the biggest draw to this tale. This isn't to say that artist Holly Meade has done a poor job. Her rambling toddler provides much of the fun in this book. It's just that if you're looking for cut-paper picture books you may be better off with the talents of David Wisniewski or Ed Young if you're hoping to be bowled over.

Obviously if you're a fan of "Hush!" then you should probably find Minfong Ho's follow up picture book, "Peek!: A Thai Hide and Seek". For those amongst you willing to make this a regular bedtime tale, the story is a wonderful sleepyheaded affair. Definitely consider pairing it with fellow tiptoe picture book, "Bear Snores On", by Karma Wilson. Read more ›

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars My 16-month-old daughter's favorite! September 2, 2003

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

Whenever we sit down in the nursery rocker, my daughter points emphatically at the bookshelf and says, "Huss! Huss!" This is her favorite book, at bedtime and during the day, and it has been for many months.

The highly original artwork is colorful (in a warm restricted palette sort of way) and captivating, showing scenes from varying angles and, despite it's simplicity, captures the expressions on the mother's face perfectly. The rhythm of the text is almost hypnotic. The animal sounds and pictures are very educational for a toddler, and my little one laughs at the baby in the story as he climbs out of bed and does his antics in the background, the mother unawares. My girl loves to find all the animals in the picture near the end of the book after the mother has convinced them all to, "Hush!" And she kisses the pages with her favorite animals, like the cat and the mouse, and even the pig!

The pictures convey the feel of the hot Thai evening and transport us to a world quite foreign to most, and are a whole lot of fun. The text is lulling or exciting, depending on how we read it. I absolutely recommend this book and so does my 16-month-old daughter.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Is the baby sleeping? May 26, 1999

By R. D. Allison ([e-mail])

Format:Hardcover

A small children's book about a Thai mother who goes around asking all of the animals to be quiet since her baby is sleeping. The book was illustrated by Holly Meade and it was a 1997 Caldecott Honor book (i.e., a runner-up to the Medal winner) for best illustrations in a book for children. Children will enjoy the book because of the antics of the baby, at how familiar mothers are from culture to culture, and seeing the world of a remote village in Thailand.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great simple story with Thai background March 13, 2004

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

"Hush! Elephant, elephant, don't come shrieking, can't you see that baby's sleeping? Elephant, elephant, don't you cry, my baby's sleeping right near by." And so the Thai mom refrains through an elephant, monkey, cat, mouse, lizard, water buffalo, duck, etc. Wonderful illustrations in earth tones. We enjoy having other cultures as primary characters in our books, so the combination of characters, simple story and beautiful illustrations makes this one of our favorites and a common gift to our friends' toddlers.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Multicultural rich with wonderful pictures. September 24, 1997

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

This picture book has a vivid collage pictures which accents the wonderful story. It has a great story line that almost any child can relate to. Pre-school - 2nd grade could greatly benefit from this book, discussing everything from animals to Thai. The multiculture ideas run wild in this book and leave doors open for children to explore and discover.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Very sweet March 29, 2003

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

My kindergartener, who can read, loved this book. She loved the rhyme for each animal: "Hush! who's that peeping? can't you see that baby's sleeping? ... don't you cry, baby's sleeping right nearby" because she could join in. It was also easy enough for her to read. I heard her repeating it in the car for several days afterward. I enjoyed it too. Great for diverse classrooms and parents of children adopted from Asia.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful book that evokes Thai culture November 17, 2001

By Michael J. Mazza HALL OF FAME

Format:Hardcover

"Hush! A Thai Lullaby" is a collaboration between writer Minfong Ho and illustrator Holly Meade. In this book, a mother tells various animals (a mosquito, a lizard, a monkey, etc.) to be quiet so that her baby can sleep. The book has a funny surprise ending.

This book is absolutely delightful. Meade's illustrations are created from cut paper and ink; these pictures are charming and colorful, and complement the text perfectly.