Toni's Topsy-Turvy Telephone Day [Hardcover]

Laura Ljungkvist (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2001 | Grade Level: P and up

Toni asks her friends to bring the goodies for a pot-luck dinner party. But when her guests arrive...Ruth was supposed to bring punch, not a pooch! Kirk was supposed to bring ballons, not baboons! In fact, everyone's brought something different, and there isn't a speck of food in sight.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Anyone who has ever played the telephone game knows what nonsense can emerge from a series of half-heard conversations. But one day, Toni's life is turned topsy-turvy through an inadvertent round of telephone! Upon deciding to throw a potluck party, Toni calls all her friends to tell them what to bring. Unfortunately, none of them can quite hear her requests: Ruth lives near the airport, Kirk baby-sits noisy babies, and Fiona lives next to the fire station. So instead of bringing bread and cheese, Ruth brings a bride and a niece. In place of salad and juice, Fiona comes with a sailor and a moose. "Oh no!" Toni cries, when Kirk shows up. "Hats and balloons, not cats and baboons!" Now, not only does she have no food, this hapless hostess has lots more guests than she counted on.

Laura Ljungkvist's hilarious tale, with striking, stylized illustrations made with layered drafting paper, fine markers, and gouache paint, will tickle the funny bones of readers of all ages. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter

From Publishers Weekly

A ribbon of black line winds and loops through this engaging, mod tale of miscommunication. The licorice-string of paint enters on the far-left margin (it's an electrical connection), shimmies up the page (it's a curly phone cord) and traces the features of a face (it's a Calder wire-portrait) before squiggling off the right-hand page. It links Toni, who's planning a potluck dinner, to six invitees. Each time Toni calls a friend, she lets them know what to bring to her party. Unbeknownst to her, the guests can't hear very well. One lives near an airport, one blasts the radio; all of them plug an ear as they strain to listen to Toni's requests. Consequently, they arrive at Toni's home with some unusual offerings: "Hello, Vera... Oh, no! I asked for a steak to kabob, not a snake and a snob!... Kirk, hello... Oh, no! Hats and balloons, not cats and baboons!" Newcomer Ljungkvist's gouaches are modern and minimal, composed of circles, triangles and stenciled designs on opaque surfaces. The author also devises a chic color combination for every character; for instance, Toni always appears against a blue-gray background that offsets her spherical orange pigtails, patterned pink dress and mahogany skin. Like the consummate party host, Ljungkvist attends to every visual detail of this telephone game, which blends fresh color, arresting abstract design and a classic listening game. Ages 3-6.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0810944863
• ISBN-13: 978-0810944862
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 9.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,007,090 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars herring and aquavit, May 20, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Toni's Topsy-Turvy Telephone Day (Hardcover)

Laura Ljungkvist's book is a winner with both my daughter and my cat. It is a very clever and engaging story (did she think this up on her own??) but also beautifully illustrated. I like the color development from start to finish. It is a very inventive and beautiful book. Its also very funny.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Let's Play Telephone....., June 18, 2001

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: Toni's Topsy-Turvy Telephone Day (Hardcover)

Toni has decided to have a potluck party and calls six of her good friends on the phone, to tell them what to bring. Unfortunately, they all live or work in noisy environments and can't quite hear her instructions clearly. Ruth lives near the airport and instead of punch and lemonade brings a pooch and a maid. Vera, the dogwalker can't make out steak for kabob and brings a snake and a snob instead. Fiona was supposed to supply the salad and juice, but she lives by the fire station and brought a sailor and a moose. And so on... Now Toni has even more guests than she knows what to do with, and no food for her party. Her quick thinking and noisy friends solve the problem by calling and ordering pizza, but even the pizza man can't quite hear the order correctly..... Laura Ljungkvist has written a delightful and inventive story that anyone who has ever played the game of telephone will easily identify with. Her humorous text is only outdone by her amazingly creative and innovative illustrations, full of bold colors, geometric shapes and a telephone line that literally connects the entire assemblage from the beginning of the story to the end. Perfect for youngsters 4-8, Toni's Topsy Turvy Telephone Day is a winner the entire family will enjoy and is sure to have everyone giggling and laughing every time it's read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read, April 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Toni's Topsy-Turvy Telephone Day (Hardcover)

Our daughter (5 years) cannot get enough of this book. She loves for us to read it out loud, and to trace the illustrations with her finger.

The book is about Toni's potluck dinner party. She calls and asks her friends to bring things to her party, but every request is misunderstood and the story grows from there.

The wonderful illustrations consist of a single line. The colors are spectacular.