I Feel a Foot! [Hardcover]

Maranke Rinck (Author), Martijn Van Der Linden (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

 "Between two trees, high above grass and ground, Turtle, Bat, Octopus, Bird and Buck are sleeping in a hammock. Suddenly, Turtle opens his eyes. 'Hey,' he whispers. 'Do you hear what I hear?'"  Each animal's imagination runs wild with what wild creature may be making the sound they all hear. Is it a giant turtle? Or a bird with a giant beak? Perhaps it is Bat-Tur-Octo-Bird- Buck. Luckily for the small animals, it isn't any of these creatures. It is just their old friend Elephant who was out wandering around. The animals invite him to join them in the hammock and soon the wild imaginings about the night noises begin all over again.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 1—This new take on the Indian fable about the blind man and the elephant features an unlikely but appealing combination of animals. Turtle, Bat, Octopus, Bird, and Goat, asleep in their hammock, are disturbed one night by a noise. Each in turn investigates: Turtle finds a foot like his, except "super big," Bat thinks she finds a "superduper wing," Octopus discovers a tentacle similar to his, but longer, and so on. Finally they realize that it is only Elephant. With simple wording, Rinck injects personality into each animal and van der Linden's images interact well with the text. His stark black backgrounds spotlight expressively imagined animals that appear in psychedelic colors and patterns reminiscent of a kaleidoscope. The large art makes the book an ideal read-aloud; after several re-readings, children are sure to join in on the "superduper" responses of the characters. A silly but clever twist at the story's close provides a "what happens next?" discussion opportunity.—Barbara Elleman, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Amherst, MA
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Review

Kirkus

 "Rinck's narrative is crisp and direct, and economical enough to be tackled by beginning readers, and van der Linden's illustrations are superb. ... A winner."

Shelf Awareness

"This nocturnal guessing game from the team behind Prince Child and its companion, The Sweetest Kiss, will appeal to children and parents alike as a picture-book remedy to the notion of monsters-under-the-bed and as a clever puzzle for young animal lovers. ... Rinck and van der Linden strike just the right note between suspense and reassurance to offer a bedtime tale with a humorous twist."

School of Library Journal

“The large art makes the book an ideal read-aloud; after several re-readings, children are sure to join in on the "superduper" responses of the characters. A silly but clever twist at the story's close provides a ‘what happens next?’” discussion opportunity."--Barbara Elleman, Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, Amherst, MA, School Library Journal

 

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 38 pages
• Publisher: Lemniscaat USA; Translated, Illustrated edition (September 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590786386
• ISBN-13: 978-1590786383
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 11.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #106,887 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > Children's Books > Animals > Turtles

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FIRR-Kids! Review, November 11, 2008

By 

www.firrkids.com - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Feel a Foot! (Hardcover)

This book is absolutely stunning! Brilliant illustrations radiate from backgrounds of solid black. It's unusual to find a children's book printed in all black, which is a shame, because this one is downright gorgeous. The illustrator relies on both bright colors and beautiful patterns to create drawings that command the readers' attention.

Five friends are fast asleep in their hammock when they are awakened by a strange sound. One by one, the animals investigate by feeling their way in the darkness, but cannot agree on what animal is making the noise. Turtle feels a giant foot and thinks it must be a turtle. Bat insists it is a huge bat after he touches an oversized wing. Octopus feels an enormous tentacle, Bird claims a large beak, and Goat discovers an enormous goatee. What could this possibly be?

Aside from being a really beautiful book, this is also a darn fun read. Children will enjoy the excitement that builds with the turn of each page, offering up their own theories on the unknown animal that stands in the darkness. After the group manages to solve their mystery, six friends pile back into the hammock to finish their nap.