This is a book intended for sale in museum gift shops, for people to buy
and give to small children under the illusion that they are bringing
culture to said children, when all they are really doing is parting with
their hard-earned money to no good purpose. This stinker of a book was
published by the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, by people
who really should have known better. I hasten to add that none of the
fault lies with the illustrator, Lisa Canney Chesaux; the illustrations
are fine, and suit the story.

The story, now, the story might be salvageable; I’m not sure. But the
telling of the story is surely awful.

The story is straightforward. Philippe is a frog with unusually large
legs. And as he lives in France, he is in constant danger of having
his legs eaten. Indeed, two frogs of his acquaintance, shortly after
having mocked his unusually large legs, are captured and whisked off to
the kitchen right before his eyes. But lucky Philippe! He wanders into
Monet’s garden, where Monet is pleased to see him; he adds a dash of
green. Philippe is safe forever.

Not a bad plot, I suppose; it has definite humorous possibilities; but as
it’s executed there’s no rising action, no tension, no sense
that Philippe is ever actually in danger–despite having his two
acquaintances captured before his eyes. But it’s the words that are the
real problem.

The book is written in rhyming prose. I assume it was intended to be in
some kind of verse, but the rhythm changes from line to line so that the
rhymes don’t come when you’d expect them to. There’s no discernable
rhyme scheme. And the rhymes are often horribly strained. “Fried”
doesn’t rhyme with “good-bye”, nor “escape” with “fate”, nor “Philippe”
with “bleat”, nor a dozen other hopeful combinations.

In short, reading this book aloud is almost physically painful. Since it
seems unlikely that everyone connected with the project has a tin ear, I
can only conclude that none of them cared much about the words, or about
reading the book to real, live children.

Note to museum-goers–read the book, before you buy it for your
niece, nephew, or grand-child. Thank you.