Penguin

This is a hilarious story about a little boy who is frustrated with is mute penguin. Well, he thinks his penguin is mute until something extraordinary happens. The antics that Ben, the little boy, goes through to get his pet Penguin to speak will make adults smile and little ones chuckle as they recognize themselves. (Imagine all of the "I would do this..." statements this book will get from any child or group of children you read it to.)

The writing and the illustrations are spare, but pack a wallop. Polly Dunbar used vibrantly colored mixed media to create the illustrations. The lion in the story (yes, there's a lion) is made with a material that almost beckons you to touch.

I can't wait to read this book during a story time! show more Definitely good for children 5 years and up! Also, good for children who need help in matching facial expressions to emotions. show less

Checked this out with One Cool Friend and And Tango Makes Three for a trio of penguin books. In Penguin, Ben opens a present and it's a penguin - but Ben's penguin won't talk or play with him at all. After a surprising encounter with a third party, Penguin shows his affection in his own way. Illustrations on a background of white space.

Love this book, love Polly Dunbar, love her illustrations. A little boy gets a penguin as a present. The penguin does not say anthing, the boy tries everything he can to make the penguin talk. Finally, the boy is eaten by a lion, the penguin rescues him and then talks in his own special penguin way.

Love this book, love Polly Dunbar, love her illustrations. A little boy gets a penguin as a present. The penguin does not say anthing, the boy tries everything he can to make the penguin talk. Finally, the boy is eaten by a lion, the penguin rescues him and then talks in his own special penguin way.

When a young boy gets a quiet penguin as a present, he tries absolutely everything to get it to talk. Relatable for everyone who has every been the quiet one or the one trying to make a reluctant friend.

Hilarious. Great surprise about 2/3 of the way in involving a hungry lion and a noisy little boy.

I like how this book showed that you can communicate even if you don't speak the same language. It would be a great tool in teaching that idea to children.