Gruff the Grump

by Steve Smallman, Cee Biscoe (Illustrator)

Overview

As part of the new Let's Read Together collection, this sweet story of friendship introduces young readers to the values of empathy and teamwork.

One morning, Gruff the Grump meets a little rabbit clinging to a branch clutching a "fallen star". The little rabbit is trying to rescue all the stars she keeps finding, and she needs a big, kind friend like Gruff to help. Gruff does not want a friend, but the little rabbit is determined...

Let's Read Together is an ideal series to share special reading time with a child while introducing important gentle lessons. The series explores a variety of topics, including friendship, acceptance, teamwork, and empathy, all the while encouraging the development of language and reading skills.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781680103724
Publisher:	Tiger Tales.
Publication date:	09/07/2021
Series:	Let's Read Together
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,069,298
Product dimensions:	9.40(w) x 10.80(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	AD590L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Steve Smallman has taken up writing his own stories after illustrating children's books for over 30 years. He also teaches illustration and mural-painting workshops in schools. When he's not working, Steve enjoys films, television, gardening, and walking in the countryside.

Cee Biscoe studied Children's Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art, earning an MA in 2007. She lives in Suffolk with her husband and a small yard full of wildlife, many of which creep and crawl their way into her illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

A friendly rabbit melts a bear's grizzly exterior. None of the other animals visits Gruff the bear, who lives in a musty, dusty cave and stomps through the forest wearing a scowl. Gruff, almost against his own will, answers the distress call of a rabbit stuck in a tree and earns an unwanted friend. The bouncy rabbit thanks him elaborately and gives him a golden leaf (which he calls a fallen star) as a memento. Gruff grumbles, but puts the star on his mantle and decides to dust. A few days later, Gruff rescues the rabbit from a log in the middle of the river and receives another star. Can Gruff's grump withstand this full frontal assault? Despite its brevity, Smallman's warm tale has a clear, logical plot development that young listeners will apprehend. Biscoe's expressive depictions, especially of the scowling Gruff, whose underslung jaw sports a couple of protruding canines, have a bit more edge that the author's tales usually prompt. Just enough this side of saccharine to be genuinely sweet. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews