That's Good! That's Bad!

by Margery Cuyler, David Catrow (Illustrator)

Overview

A little boy has a comical series of adventures and misadventures with a bunch of wild animals in That’s Good! That’s Bad! by Margery Cuyler with full color illustrations by David Catrow.

A visit to the zoo turns into a high-flying trip as a shiny red balloon carries a little boy into the animals’ habitats where he has close up meets and greets with baboons, elephants, snakes, and many other jungle creatures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780805029543
Publisher:	Square Fish
Publication date:	10/15/1993
Series:	That's Good! That's Bad!
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	220,907
Product dimensions:	11.00(w) x 9.45(h) x 0.10(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Margery Cuyler is the author of many books for children, including From Here to There, The Little Dump Truck, and the chapter book Weird Wolf. The idea for That's Good! That's Bad! came from a conversation with her son, Thomas, who asked, "Can't bad things change into good things?" Ms. Cuyler grew up in the oldest house in Princeton, NJ, and started writing stories as soon as she learned how to write. She now lives in the same house with her husband, sons and two cats.

Editorial Reviews

Cuyler's fanciful tale is energized by exclamations that beg to be read aloud. Catrow's witty cartoons paint the jungle in a humorous light and hilarioiusly depict the boy's alternating terror and relief. And that's good!” —Publisher's Weekly

“This rollicking romp through the animal kingdom features vibrant, richly colored cartoon illustrations in a style that is reminiscent of Bill Peet's. It will keep children engaged from beginning to satisfying end. They'll beg for another reading.” —School Library Journal

“A surefire hit, the book amuses, delights, and frightens, all within the safe confines of the pages.” —Booklist

From the Publisher

At the zoo a boy is lifted into the sky by his balloon. ``Oh, that's good. No, that's bad! ''--because the balloon pops when it hits a tree deep in the jungle. ``Oh, that's bad. No, that's good! ''--because the wide-eyed lad falls into a river and climbs onto a hippo, who takes him to shore. Thus incidents that appear to be positive turn out to be negative (and vice-versa) as the child confronts an extremely colorful bevy of animals, including baboons who chase him up a tree, a hissing snake whom he mistakes for a vine, a kindly elephant who pulls him out of quicksand and a stork who flies him back to the zoo, into the arms of his parents. Cuyler's ( Fat Santa ) fanciful tale is energized by exclamations (``WHEEEE!''; ``WHOOPS!''; ``GLUG! GLUG!'') that beg to be read aloud. Catrow's witty cartoons paint the jungle in a humorous light and hilariously depict the boy's alternating terror and relief. And that's good ! Ages 4-7. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

PreS-Gr 2A cheerful calypso beat by Chris Kubie introduces this recording of Margery Cuyler's That's Good! That's Bad (Holt, 1991). A pleasant male voice reads the story of a boy's zoo adventures slowly and clearly, as a chorus of expressive children's voices chant the refrain, "That's good" or "That's bad." Having children interact with the reader on the tape is excellent, emphasizing the participatory nature of the tale. Children reading along in the book will have no trouble following the story and will enjoy the lively pictures by David Catrow. One side of the cassette includes page turn signals (the sound of a turning page). This is a very nice resource for learning centers and beginning readers. It might even encourage young writers to try their hand at this type of story.-Elizabeth C. Fiene, Clermont County Public Library, Bethel, OH

School Library Journal