"Along padded Fox.
"Whoopee," yipped he.
"My nose does not deceive.
I'll soon be eating supper,
with patience ... and a breeze!"
And he waggety-dashed
into a hollow log to wait."
Oh, such a group of greedy varmints! They all want ownership of the apple that Mouse has her eye on. It is ripe and ready to fall, so Mouse hides herself under a fallen leaf to wait for the apple to drop to the ground nearby. Assuming she is the first to spot it, she considers it her own property. She is hungering for it.
Who should bounce into the story but Hare? Hare is eager to make the apple his lunch. He, too, considers it his. Then Fox, Deer, and Bear show up, all hungering for the bright, juicy, red apple that will soon fall from the apple tree. They hide themselves away in preparation. When the wind blows the apple from its branch anchor, every animal pounces on it. What a brouhaha!
In the midst of the bedlam, the apple is sent flying where it is found by an unsuspecting possum who will willingly share it with the worm she sees on the inside. What a surprise, and a delightful ending for this rhythmic read for young listeners.
The descriptive vocabulary-building text is accompanied by Eric Rohmann's winning artwork that gives life to each of the characters longing to make the apple their own. The spreads are spacious and offer a clear look at all the action. The split screen, focusing on the animals singularly as they watch the apple fall, is stellar. The varied perspectives and expressive animal faces hold attention until the final, surprising illustration.
Children will want to hear this one again and again!
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