Nothing Rhymes with Orange

by Adam Rex

Overview

"It begs to be sung aloud. And will make you a better person. Completely beyond good and evil!" — Jon Scieszka, first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.

A perfect laugh-out-loud, read-aloud tale from New York Times bestselling author Adam Rex: We all know nothing rhymes with orange, but how does that make Orange feel? Well, left out, obviously! When a fruit parade gets together to sing a song about how wonderful they are—and the song happens to rhyme—Orange can't help but feel like it's impossible to ever fit in. But when one particularly intuitive Apple notices how Orange is feeling, the entire English language begins to become a bit more inclusive.

• A charming book that teaches lessons about friendship and inspires conversations about inclusiveness and cherishing our differences
• The bright and big illustrations paired with funny rhymes are sure to bring a smile to readers of all ages
• Adam Rex is the author and illustrator of many beloved picture books and novels, including the New York Times bestseller Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, and has worked with the likes of Jon Scieszka, Mac Barnett, and Jeff Kinney

A Huffington Post Best Book of the Year: Vibrant illustrations, enjoyable rhyming text, and a sweet, happy ending make Nothing Rhymes with Orange a book you'll keep coming back to time and time again.

• Great read-aloud book for families and classrooms
• Books for kids ages 5-6
• Books for kindergarten and up

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452157603
Publisher:	Chronicle Books LLC
Publication date:	08/01/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	48
File size:	16 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Adam Rex is the author and illustrator of many beloved picture books and novels, including the New York Times bestseller Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, and has worked with the likes of Jon Scieszka, Mac Barnett, and Jeff Kinney. He lives in Tucson, Arizona.

Editorial Reviews

★ 05/29/2017
Rex (XO, OX: A Love Story) takes the conventional wisdom of the title and runs with it. He paints hands, feet, and antic cartoon faces on photos of fruit, sets them against brown-paper-bag backgrounds, then imagines them improvising a bunch of Burma Shave–style jingles in praise of fruit. An apple and a pear begin (“Who wouldn’t travel anywhere/ to get an apple or a pear?”), and a lonely orange watches the fun from the sidelines: “I’ll be back here if you need me,” it mutters. The rhymes grow ever more outrageous (“a lychee is just peachy./ Thus Spoke Zarathustra is a book by Friedrich Nietzsche”) and the mayhem snowballs. Off in his corner, the orange seethes, especially after a pear bitten by a wolf becomes a pearwolf (“This book’s sorta gone off the rails,” it grumps). A big fruit party ensues (Nietzsche is there, so are yams for some reason), and the group finally acknowledges the orange with a rhyme all its own, nonsensical though it may be. A sly concept, deft artwork, and unflagging energy make this a winner. Ages 5–8. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"The absurd and the organic come together in a hilarious ode to fruit, fun, and friendship. Adam Rex proves that he is the Bard of Produce." -New York Times bestselling author/illustrator LeUyen Pham

"Silly and a warm story about feelings and friendship, making it a very fun party indeed."—Common Sense Media

Chicago Trubune Best Children's Books of the Year

"Whether read aloud or solo, the bright illustrations, funny rhymes and happy ending make this a thoroughly enjoyable story."—Shelf Awareness

From the Publisher

★ 2017-05-01
As page after page uses rhymes and puns to celebrate fruits, an orange, who is sadly aware of its nonrhyming name, provides commentary that encompasses a wide range of emotions—ending with a feeling of acceptance from the greater fruit community.Funny, clever, and whimsical text includes a plethora of both terminal and internal rhymes. The fruits are collaged photographs that have been anthropomorphized with inked-on limbs and facial expressions. The expressiveness of the faces—especially of the orange—provides an irresistible match to the text. A bold-lettered refrain celebrates fruit: "They're healthy happy colorful and cute!" The solitary orange gives various negative reactions to that litany and other verses, but readers will see through these defense mechanisms. Especially funny is the orange's response to "If you aren't a fan of cantaloupe, / then feed it to an antelope." Staring up at the large, black woodblock print of the animal, upon whose back teeters the eponymous melon, the orange comments, "Well, that was a little forced." Another treat (mostly for adults) is mustachioed Friedrich Nietzsche rhyming with "lychee" and "peachy." After the orange finally admits that the book about fruit is "amazing," a kind, observant apple brings the sulking citrus warmly into the group. Slight differences in typeface distinguish between the orange's dialogue and the rest of the text, cuing caregivers to change voices for a perfect read-aloud. Fruitful in every sense of the word. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews