The Animals' Ark

Dubuc gives us the Noah's Ark story from the animals' perspective--and for very young children. Without feeling oppressive or claustrophobic, the book manages to reflect the frustration of being cooped up during a rainy spell because the pencil-crayon illustrations, on clean, small-trim pages, are so uncluttered and the animals are so cuddly-looking. There's humor along with moments of loveliness.

Dubuc (Animal Masquerade, rev. 5/12; The Lion and the Bird, rev. 9/14) gives us the Noah's Ark story from the animals' perspective -- and for very young children. "Pip! Pop!" First it starts to rain. Then it begins to pour. A representative sampling of creatures sits perched on a tiny island: "There was so much water everywhere, the animals didn't know where to seek shelter." Enter Noah, who floats up on his ark and lowers the gangplank (and now we see our two-by-twos). Things are crowded onboard, and a few of the creatures are "terribly bored," but most everyone settles in. They pass the time by playing games and helping one another. Still the rain is falling, as Dubuc's well-paced text reminds listeners, and then a storm hits, adding some drama. The storm passes, but spirits are low; a dove, fed up with the squabbling, has flown off to find land -- and the rest is biblical history. The book manages to reflect the frustration of being cooped up during a rainy spell without feeling oppressive or claustrophobic because the pencil-crayon illustrations, on clean, white pages in a small trim size, are so uncluttered and the animals are so cuddly-looking; everyone's cheeks remain rosy throughout. There's humor ("the hedgehogs were a thorn in others' hides," pictured next to a perturbed lion pulling quills from its backside) along with moments of loveliness: "Still the rain fell day and night," says the text, but in the moonlit illustration we see the sky beginning to clear. elissa gershowitz