The Bog Baby

by Jeanne Willis

Book Overview

The Bog Baby is a magical story by Jeanne Willis and Gwen Millward When two small sisters go fishing to the magic pond, they find something much better than a frog or a newt. They find a bog baby.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375861769
• ISBN13: 9780375861765
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Books
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 10.6" x 8.6"
• Age Range: 3 to 7 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 2

Customer Reviews

Wonderful book

Love this book. My 5 year old boy loves this book. The illustrations are so whimsical and my child gets sucked right in to the story and the magic of finding and caring for the mythical creature. Highly recommended.

This little Bog Baby with "boggly eyes and a spiky tail" teaches children a lesson about keeping wil

A little girl told her mother that she and her friend Chrissy were going over to their friend Annie's house for the day. They never really intended to go there and instead they went fishing in "a magic pond in Bluebell Wood." They were never, ever supposed to go fishing alone, but the dell just called to them. The crossed the footbridge near the big birch trees and sat close together and started fishing. They were trying to catch a newt, but instead they "caught something much better . . . a Bog Baby!" He was a funny looking critter about the "size of a frog, only round and blue. He had "boggly eyes and a spiky tail." He was floating on his back sucking on his toes. She leaned down and plucked him out of the water. He was soft and cuddly and would make a great pet so they "took him home and hid him in the shed." He was a special Bog Baby. They loved and cuddled him and even took him to school, but she didn't dare tell her mother because they were supposed to go to Annie's. They made a home for him in a bucket and "fed him cake crumbs" and loved him, but one day he became sick. Mom found them all hiding in the shed . . . what was going to happen to their Bog Baby when she spotted him? This is an adorable little story that most country parents can relate to. There always manages to be a bucket or an old aquarium that is filled with some creature that should have been left in the wild. I loved the way the author gently caught the conversation and the spirit of the little girls who did something wrong and knew it, but also didn't understand that keeping a wild creature was not. I enjoyed the artwork thought and the Bog Baby was very precious and unique. There is a page in the back for notes about any Bog Baby your youngster might come across and an address to send drawings. The company would like to know things like, "Does he croak, purr or tweet?" I'd like to know too!

Wonderful!

What a fabulous story to help teach kids that wild things are best not kept as pets. I think kids will relate to the girls defying what their mom told them to do but being able to go to her for help in the end. Great illustrations, story and message.

Teaching kids about leaving critters where they live in a very magical story

Kiwi Magazine Review: Bog babies do exist. They really do. If you've never seen one, you probably had a similar experience when you captured that baby toad or frog and thought you could be best friends forever. But toads, frogs and bog babies don't belong in pickle jars or pockets. This story really sends a fanciful yet practical message about all of the wonderful creatures who hop, run, skip and fly nearby and that's exactly how it should remain; let the bog babies stay where they belong as we observe their magic.