There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly

K-GR 2—Colorful, quirky illustrations combined with hilarious speech bubbles will make this new version of the traditional story/song appealing to children. The drawings show pandemonium outside and inside the old woman's stomach, and she looks positively eager to eat ever-larger animals in her quest to capture the fly buzzing in her stomach. When the cat, who has shouted out helpful encouragement and admonishments to the old woman at several stages, finds itself being swallowed, it shouts out "Eat the dog!" and readers can't help but laugh when comparing the expressions on the woman's face (calm, matter of fact), the cat's face (sheer terror), and the dog's face (complete bewilderment). This sort of over-the-top dark humor pervades the entire story. Like the traditional version, the old woman dies after she eats the horse, but all the animals in her stomach shout out, "No!" when they see what she is attempting. Midway through her final meal, her stomach explodes (only suggested at in the drawing), and the final pages show the animals marching off in high spirits while the old lady returns as a smiling angel. A spirited and funny read-aloud.—Sally James, South Hillsborough Elementary School, Hillsborough, CA