Tom Willans

A tiger comes along threatening to eat a muskrat, but the muskrat says he must tell him a story first. The muskrat's story then contains a story within the story and so forth and so on. Can the clever muskrat outsmart the hungry tiger?

This is a short and sweet funny story that unfolds like a nesting doll set. It reminds me of a child's version of 1,001 Nights. It could be used in a classroom setting in the context of talking about food chains as a humorous look at how that works. The show more illustrations are a little more cartoony than I usually like, but they work well for the type of book this is. Overall, this is an entertaining read for young kids. show less

I was a little worried about the dark humor here, but I enjoyed this immensely and I think the kids were probably just fine.

A very cute book with a very quirky story line. I love this book because it has the funny repetitive story line to keep any child entertained. You never know when the story is going to end, but the whole time you want it to keep going so that the little muskrat stays alive. In the end you have a wonderful end to the story who leaves everyone giggling and smiling...well except for the tiger. This book is a great read, especially for younger children!

I found this book enjoyable. It tells a story within a story. The plot includes a muskrat who seems to outfox the fox that wishes to eat him. I think kids would really like it. Students could participate by shouting, "Wait! I want to tell you a story" because it is featured thoughout the book.