Little Green Donkey (B&N Exclusive Edition)

by Anuska Allepuz, Anuska Allepuz (Illustrator)

Overview

This Barnes & Noble Exclusive Edition has a new cover and includes a perforated sheet of fun stickers!

Little Donkey doesn’t want to eat anything but yummy grass. Oh, dear — he has turned green! Is it time to try some other foods?

Little Donkey loves eating grass. Grass is so juicy, zingy, sweet, and tangy! Mom asks him to please have a tiny taste of something else — oranges, watermelon, broccoli? — but a life of eating grass is just fine with Little Donkey. Until one day he spies his reflection in the watering hole and sees that he has turned green. Mom resumes her persuasion with new urgency. Apples and grapes? Yuck! No thank you! But carrots — carrots are crunchy, crispy, and delicious! Little Donkey is delighted with his new carrot-only diet and happy to transform from his all-green self to — oops! Pictures full of color and movement bring to life a charming story that will resonate with choosy eaters.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781536238181
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	01/02/2024
Edition description:	B&N Exclusive Edition
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	3,366
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 10.60(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Anuska Allepuz is the illustrator of several books, including The Girl, the Cat, and the Navigator and The Boy, the Bird, and the Coffin Maker, both by Matilda Woods. She lives in Cambridge, England.

Editorial Reviews

06/01/2020

Employing vibrant mixed media illustrations and an exuberant, single-minded protagonist, Allepuz (That Fruit Is Mine!) presents a comic cautionary tale for picky eaters. Round-bellied Little Donkey has a very limited palate that—despite his mother’s pleas—consists entirely of grass, “so sweet and tangy, flavory fresh and green!” “Even my pillow is made of grass, so that when I wake up, I can start eating right away,” Little Donkey declares. An opening image of the animal luxuriating in a lush emerald field makes grass seem very tasty indeed, but as Little Donkey’s belly fills, the voracious eater transforms from pale gray to viridescent. Venturing to a stream for water, Little Donkey is shocked by the lawn-like reflection staring back: “I am a GIGANTIC herb!” When an attempt at a muddy, leafy disguise fails to fool Little Donkey’s mom, she attempts to offer her child some new foods—oranges, grapes, apples, watermelon. Via a mostly blank text-only spread, readers are told that nothing is as delicious as grass. But an explosion of carroty confetti, and an amusing tune celebrating the orange food, suggest that Little Donkey’s newest obsession may again have colorful consequences. The bright, silly humor of Allepuz’s gleeful gourmand will leave even the fussiest eaters giggling. Ages 3–7. (July)

Publishers Weekly

Throughout, Allepuz’s colorful illustrations augment the text’s humor, especially in a spread akin to a centerfold that shows Little Donkey’s alarm at being all green, head-to-hoof. A good pick even for picky readers.
—Kirkus Reviews

Allepuz delivers a humorous take on a topic that's quite common, while depicting an adorable donkey in pastel illustrations. Help picky eaters reflect on the consequences of poor diets, discuss nutrition, and highlight favorite foods in a fun way.
—Booklist

Employing vibrant mixed media illustrations and an exuberant, single-minded protagonist, Allepuz (That Fruit Is Mine!) presents a comic cautionary tale for picky eaters...The bright, silly humor of Allepuz’s gleeful gourmand will leave even the fussiest eaters giggling.
—Publishers Weekly

Allepuz’s text and illustrations combine to highlight the sweet ridiculousness of embracing one choice to the exclusion of others.
—School Library Journal Online

From the Publisher

06/12/2020

PreS—It's fragrant, delicious, and irresistible, and the little gray-brown donkey eats so much of the grass he loves that he soon turns green. That's where preschoolers will howl for the first time. His misguided but funny attempts to hide himself—rolling in the mud and covering his body with leaves—fail. Next, with the encouragement of his mother, the little donkey tries a range of foods including oranges, watermelon, apples, and grapes. The next moment of delight comes when the donkey discovers a passion for carrots—and turns orange. Like Eric Carle's A Very Hungry Caterpillar, this book will have a rapt and ready audience. VERDICT Allepuz's text and illustrations combine to highlight the sweet ridiculousness of embracing one choice to the exclusion of others.—Alpha DeLap, St. Thomas Sch., Medina, WA

School Library Journal

2020-04-12
Little Donkey lives out the adage that you are what you eat, with humorous outcomes.

Little Donkey is a finicky eater and will eat only green grass. Mom tries to convince her child to try other foods, to no avail. Humorous illustrations show that Little Donkey’s exclusive overconsumption of grass causes a dramatic transformation. When Little Donkey sees a decidedly green reflection in the pond, the young equine panics, rolling in mud and leaves to try to conceal the greenness. Mom sees right through this ruse—Little Donkey’s green snout is clearly and comically visible. This finally prompts Little Donkey to try other foods, but none appeal—until Little Donkey tries carrots. Careful readers may have noticed the carrots decorating the front endpapers and will delight to see this newfound favorite food. Alas, trying and loving carrots does not break Little Donkey’s trying trait. Young readers will not be surprised to see the protagonist overindulging so that the once-green hide turns orange. “Great,” Little Donkey says on the final page, delivering a funny ending if not a sign of growth. Throughout, Allepuz’s colorful illustrations augment the text’s humor, especially in a spread akin to a centerfold that shows Little Donkey’s alarm at being all green, head-to-hoof.

A good pick even for picky readers. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews