From Publishers Weekly
Nygaard debuts with a musical overture about nature sounds made by birds, frogs, crickets and, of course, snakes. Near a lake, in a woodland called Snake Alley, the snakes gather to perform. "They hissed: Shhh Shhh Shhh. They bopped their tails: BOOM BOOM BOOM. Shhh-BOOM Shhh-BOOM Shhh-BOOM." The author never explains how a whiplike tail can make a booming bass thump, but makes the point that snakes prefer the company of other snakes, regardless of their monotonous melody. The turning point comes when the littlest snake meets some other noisemakers, among them a bird ("Tweet-tweedle-dee-deet") and a frog ("cha-BOP cha-BOP cha-BOP"). He notes that reptiles aren't the only ones with rhythm and, rejected by his peers, forms the multispecies Snake Alley Band. The parable ends with the hero jamming in harmony with the other wildlife. Nygaard suggests that diversity offers plenty of possibilities, but never resolves the subplot about the segregationist snakes. Lewin (Yo, Hungry Wolf!), too, keeps the tone light with her loosely drawn images. She hints at a wetland setting with cattails and animal tracks in the mud, but her pen-and-ink and watercolor images may seem to some readers more like sketches than finished art. The story has more to do with onomatopoeia than with social skills, falling short in both style and substance, and lacking a note of finality. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2-This picture-book tribute to doo-wop is pure fun. Down in Fox Woods, on a skinny piece of land that juts out into the lake, a snake band is singing ("Shh-BOOM Shh-BOOM"). As fall approaches, the littlest snake curls up under a log to sleep. When he awakens in the spring, his fellow vocalists are nowhere to be seen. He begins to look for them and meets a chirping cricket ("Chew-up chew-up"), a croaking frog ("Cha-BOP cha-BOP cha-BOP"), a fish ("POP-POP-DOO-WOP"), a bird ("Tweet-tweedle-dee-deet"), and a turtle ("TA-TOOM TA-TOOM TOOM"), all of whom want to be in the band. Little Snake is accustomed to the "Shh-BOOMs" of his own ensemble and refuses to croon with the clamorous animals. Finally, he locates his group in the woods and soon realizes that it is missing the musical variety the others offered. Returning to the lake, he convinces the other critters to join him and together they serenade the sunset. Lewin's cartoon illustrations deftly bring the animals to life through facial expressions and movements. The artist's use of deep backgrounds for the evenings and sunsets adds color to the scenes. The alliterative text is meant to be read aloud and will inspire listeners to chime in. Pair this with Thacher Hurd's Mama Don't Allow (Harper, 1984) for a rip-roaring, hip-hopping storytime.
Angela J. Reynolds, West Slope Community Library, Portland, ORCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
