Customer Reviews

Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile

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I have known and admired one of the authors, storyteller and writer Meg Lippert, for many years. So I was delighted to learn of her several collaborations with Liberian storyteller Won-Ldy Paye and illustrator Julie Paschkis.

This Liberian folktale tells how a chicken mistakes the shape of a crocodile submersed in the water for her own reflection; when she gets closer to investigate, the crocodile grabs her and takes her to the crocodile's house to eat her. But the chicken reverses the deception with a trick of her own - and has the last laugh.

This story is a perfect choice for a picture book. The double-trickster tale could feel cold and unsatisfying in the wrong hands. But the bold, cheery and dramatic illustrations do a skillful job of lifting the mood while conveying the sense of an African esthetic.

Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile is a tale with a non-European flavor. As such, it can take some (probably small) adjustment of expectations for a mainstream North American or European audience. But that is also part of its value. This book gives us in the dominant society a small glimpse into a culture different from our own. It does so with wit and artistry. And the under-hen wins!

The storyteller's voice is delightful and compelling and makes this tale perfect for oral telling or read-alouds. The illustrations are a perfect complement to the text and the full effect is even better than the sum of its stellar parts.

We just got this book last week. When my kids take turns choosing books to read, this one comes first, regardless of whose turn it is. On the first reading my easily scared 4-year-old sank deeper and deeper into the couch as Mrs. Chicken got closer and closer to being eaten by Crocodile. When she actually SNAPPED on her leg, he couldn't watch. But as Mrs. Chicken's clever plan unfolded he started smiling and by the end he was laughing at what he called the coolest trick ever. He loves it.

"Mrs. Chicken and the Hungry Crocodile" combines a text by Won-Ldy Paye and Margaret H. Lippert with illustrations by Julie Paschkis. The book jacket notes that this is a retelling of a Liberian story, and that coauthor Paye is from Liberia and was trained as a storyteller by his grandmother.

The story tells how Mrs. Chicken, while trying to see her reflection in the river, encounters the toothy croc of the title. Mrs. C tries to outwit the croc in order to avoid becoming a chicken dinner. This is a great story: it's funny, features a high stakes conflict between two strong female characters, and has suspenseful plot twists. There is a delicious irony throughout. Paschkis' colorful drawings perfectly complement the story. The artwork has a whimsical quality and clever visual touches; the main characters are particularly well realized.

This is a wonderful wacky folktale. The children will enjoy listening to this story and the adults will love reading it to them. In this story, a chicken finds a most unusual way of outwitting a rather gulliable crocodile. I have read this book to many kindergarten classes and I have given it, as a gift, to many young children. The response is always a happy one. The kindergarten kids will ask me to please read it again.