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Nov 05, 2011

Jackie rated it:

city dog, country frog

by Mo Willems ; illus. by Jon J Muth

Preschool, Primary Disney-Hyperion unpaged

2010 978-1-4231-0300-4 $17.99

An eager dog; a whimsical frog; an unlikely friendship! Using simple text and luscious watercolors Mo Willems and Jon J Muth together create a moving tale of love and loyalty. City dog, happy to be free of a leash, visits the country and befriends a frog. They spend long More...

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Oct 05, 2011

Matt rated it:

This is a story about a between a city dog and a country frog, and what they did every season the city dog visited the country and the frog on his rock. In the Spring the played country frog's games. In the summer city dog taught country frog how to play his games, which included sniffing, fetching, and barking. In the fall when city dog went to visit, they didn't play any physical games, just remembering games. This was because country frog was very old and tired. They sat together and rem More...

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Jan 19, 2011

Beverly rated it:

In spring, when City Dog runs free in the country for the first time, he spots Country Frog sitting on a rock, waiting for a friend. "You'll do," Frog says, and together they play Country Frog games. In summer, they meet again and play City Dog games. Through the seasons, whenever City Dog visits the country he runs straight for Country Frog's rock. In winter, things change for City Dog and Country Frog. Come spring, friendship blooms again, a little different
this time.

More...

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Jan 16, 2011

Jane rated it:

CITY DOG, COUNTRY FROG is a touching story of two unlikely friends. The book takes the reader through the seasons of the year showing not only the changes in the landscape but the growing friendship between City Dog and Country Frog. While Country Frog teaches City Dog the joys of frog activities like jumping and splashing, City Dog teaches Country Frog how to throw so they can play dog games like catch. Even though the text is simple, the illustrations speak volumes. The reader can see the love More...

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Jan 07, 2011

Alexandre rated it:

Heartfelt story about two unusual friends who discover themselves through uncommon situations. Excellent children`s picture book author Mo Williems and illustrator Jon J Muth have once again wrote and illustrated this great book, City dog, country frog. Short tale about two unusual friends and the passing of time.
City dog all excited to run in the wild without a leash meets country frog, an old tired frog. Country frog shows country dog, country frog games. Then city dog shows country frog More...

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Sep 23, 2010

Emmeline rated it:

I love all of Mo Willems’ books (seriously, I can’t think of one I don’t like) – but this is by far my new favorite.

Still slightly silly and fairly simple (in typically Willems’ fashion) – City Dog Country Frog is story is much sweeter, and offers grown-ups and kids alike an important lesson on friendship, the changing of seasons and life.

Subtle in both words and illustrations this book can be read in many different way to children of all different ages. The first time More...

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Jun 23, 2010

Susan rated it:

This poignant tale about unlikely friendships by Mo Willems and Jon Muth opens when City Dog joyfully welcomes Spring by running without his leash in the countryside. He soon meets Country Frog and the two become great friends, sharing their talents: splashing, croaking, fetching, and barking as the seasons of the country pass by. I found Willems' spare, repetitive word selection was well-matched with Muth's extremely expressive watercolor illustrations. Each illustration is displayed on t More...

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Oct 08, 2010

Sweet on Books rated it:

City Dog, Country Frog is a simple story about the passing seasons and an unlikely friendship between a frog and a dog – and it is so much more than that too. When City Dog first comes to the country he is happy just to run free. Then he spies something he has never seen before - a frog sitting on a rock. Instead of running in the other direction at something (or someone) new, City Dog approaches this creature and starts a conversation. Country Frog claims that he’s waiting for a friend “But you More...

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Oct 11, 2011

Daklink added it

City Dog, Country Frog is a very touching story of two unlikely friends. You are taken on a journey through the seasons in this book showing not only the changes in the landscape during the times of the year but the growing friendship between these two unlikely friends. They each get to teach one another activities and games of the other and it is really exciting reading through this book just seeing the joy they get doing things that they might not otherwise do or enjoy. It is a book that shows More...

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Apr 16, 2011

Josiah rated it:

Every once in a while, authors will write something that shows a different side of themselves than most of us have seen in their books. Mo Willems has rightly gained major acclaim through the years for the hilarious picture books that he seems to so effortlessly create, but City Dog, Country Frog is something quite different. It is a short, sweet immersion, for but a few emotion-filled moments, in the experience of the journey of life, unflinching even when it comes to the inevitability of losi More...

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Oct 01, 2010

David rated it:

In spring, when City Dog runs free in the country for the first time, he spots Country Frog sitting on a rock, waiting for a friend. "You'll do," Frog says, & together they play Country Frog games. In summer, they meet again & play City Dog games. Through the seasons, whenever City Dog visits the country he runs straight for Country Frog's rock. In winter, things change for City Dog & Country Frog. Come spring, friendship blooms again, a little different this time.

Mo Wille More...

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Oct 02, 2011

Laura rated it:

This is a beautiful story of a friendship through the seasons...literally and figuratively. City dog and country frog meet in the spring and become instant if unusual friends. Their friendship continues through summer and fall, where they sit and remember the fun they had in spring and summer. When winter comes, city dog cannot find his dear friend and sits and waits for spring to come again. Will his old friend return, or will a new friendship develop?

I read this book with m More...

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Apr 05, 2011

Michelle rated it:

Oh, you cynical adults, so thoroughly convinced that Country Frog croaked. Don't be so sure of yourselves.

I've read this story to kids many times, and I love asking them what they think happened to Country Frog. They've said that Country Frog might be hibernating, has moved to a warmer spot, is off looking for food, or is hiding in the water. A few have said that they think he died, but none were beside themselves with grief. Several children observed that Country Frog changes color More...

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Mar 09, 2011

Sarah-Greenbeanteenqueen rated it:

Books where animals die should come with a warning label that says "Sarah, do not pick up this book!" I can't handle them. The moment country frog says he's tired, I turned to my husband and yelled that the frog was going to die and this was a stupid book.

OK, so maybe it's not a stupid book. It's a quite lovely book actually. And we're never told country frog dies, exactly, so I'll just pretend he found a new farm and a new pond, right??

The story is a lovely a More...

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Feb 12, 2011

Treasa rated it:

This book makes me cry every time I read it. But it's a good kind of crying. It is a beautiful story about friendship. I love the dog. I love the frog. The illustrations are lovely; the text is just perfect. I want to read it over and over again, even though it makes me cry. It's just such a beautiful book.

I say this as an adult, however. I am not sure how a child would react to this book. I suspect that some young children would not understand what had happened to the frog. And for More...

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Sep 02, 2010

Erin rated it:

I loved this new book by Willems even though it made me cry. The story is so simple and tender that it's very touching and the watercolour illustrations glow with the same love that the minimal text does. I love the seasonal pacing of the book and the pattern to the illustrations. The subject also seems entirely appropriate to kids as it is vague enough to deal with the aging or death of a grandparent or even just a friend who had moved away. As usual, the anthropomorphism bothers me a bit, More...

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Jun 29, 2011

Sara rated it:

Category: picture book
Author: Mo Willems
Illustrator: John J. Muth
Title: City Dog, Country Frog
Publisher: 2010 by Hyperion Book
ISBN: 1423103009 (ISBN13: 9781423103004)
Genre: fiction
Reading level: grade 1 and up
Awards: Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Picture Book (2010)

A dog from the city visits the country and meets a frog who was waiting for a friend...that was Spring.

A dog and a frog who are friends spend time together s More...

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Jan 21, 2011

Michael rated it:

SPOILER ALERT!!! For this review I am going to write about City Dog, Country Frog by: Mo Willems. This book was about a city dog who was playing in a forest, and suddenly came near a river. The city dog met a country frog, that was sitting on a rock, at that river. Country frog, and city dog wanted to become friends, so they did. Some days they would play frog games, and other days they would play dog games. Soon their friendship ended because country frog died. City dog then took country More...

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Oct 14, 2011

S.N.Arly rated it:

As a fan of Mo Willems' books (Knuffle Bunny, The Pigeon, and Elephant and Piggie), and a fan of Jon J Muth's beautiful watercolors, we thought this must the most perfect book ever when we picked it up at the library.

It is a wonderful book, perhaps as good for adults as it is for children. Be warned; it may bring tears to your eyes and cause awkward questions about that whole circle of life thing. You may want to give it a read through before reading it to the kids.

That sai More...

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Aug 28, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

I swear it's Mo Willems mission in life to make me sob in front of my child. I'm weeping as I type this. Even my husband tears up a little when reading his books and this one is no exception. In yet another poignant picture book Mo Willems has done it again, this time with the cycle of life.

City Dog is so excited to be out and running free and meeting new friends, that he really doesn't give much thought to Country Frog's unusual response. There is playing to be done. But More...

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Jul 28, 2010

Melissa rated it:

City Dog, Country Frog is a book about an unlikely friendship. City dog gets to roam the country without a leash and happens upon Country Frog. They decide to play frog games together and then City Dog must go. City Dog gets to come back and he finds his friend. This time he and Country Frog play dog games together. They continue their friendship every season that City Dog gets to go to the country until one day Country Frog is not found. City Dog looks and looks and then finds a “froggy g More...

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Aug 05, 2010

Cathy rated it:

This is a very sweet story with beautiful artwork to support it. Mo Williems is famous for his funny but always touching books for children. The other books of his that I've read were all illustrated by the author, and a big part of what makes them so special is the way that he is able to convey emotions so clearly with just a simple sketch or figure. So I wasn't sure what to expect this time. But Jon J. Muth provided lovely full page watercolor pictures that perfectly captured this simple but t More...

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Sep 11, 2011

Jill rated it:

This book is depressing.

I am a Mo Willems lover, so when I saw this at the library, I had to pick it up! There were two copies so Matt and I read it side by side. I love having a boyfriend who will happily read picture books with me!!!

I digress. Anyway, this was a touching and very well-illustrated book, but very sad. In the book, the dog comes out to the country once in a while and chills with his buddy, the frog. Each season goes by, they hang out and have a good time doing More...

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Jun 24, 2010

Deva rated it:

I don't necessarily think other readers will love this like I do. Because honestly I think the main reason I both sought it out in the first place (I hardly ever read picture books but from the first time this showed up in my google reader I had to know more) was that City Dog looks very much like a brown-and-white version of my dog Charlie.

But I did love it, especially the illustrations (which looked oddly familiar to me in style -- I finally realized the artist was one of my favorite More...

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Feb 11, 2011

Bridget R. rated it:

A dog from the city makes friends with a country frog. Their difference of species doesn't stop these friends. Frog plays dog games and Dog plays frog games. Through the seasons, these two are fast friend. When Frog goes away for the winter and doesn't return, Dog isn't unhappy. He finds a new friend in the country--Chipmunk.

What I thought: A delightful book with charming illustrations. Dog & Frog's friendship is endearing. The book clearly shows that differences don't matter in frie More...

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Oct 30, 2010

Shannon rated it:

When I heard Mo Willems wrote this book, I was angry. Why in the world would such a fantastic author/illustrator have someone else do the art for his book? And what was up with this sweet, touchy-feely watercolor crap?

Then I realized that this was Mo Willem's power ballad, his assertion that He Can Be Very Serious. And he does it well. I knew about two pages into the book what was going to happen, but I was still charmed. The art is lovely, although I'm a bit surprised it's beating out More...

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Jan 30, 2012

Emilye rated it:

This is a story about two unlikely friends. A dog and a frog they are friends for about a year when the frogs time to die has come. Then the dog makes a new friend after mourning the loss of his old frog friend. I think this book explains what it means to be a good friend. Also this book teaches how eventually the time may come when your friend is gone and how it is sad but one can recover from that loss. I think this book could be used to help a child get through the loss of a loved one. I like More...

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Jan 19, 2011

Jeanette rated it:

Sweet book about a dog from the city who learns to have fun in the country after making friends with a frog.
Very different from Willems usual books and I can see why he had someone else illustrate it. (I think this is the first book by Willems that he did not illustrate?) I did like Muth's illustrations, especially when the dog smiles a froggy smile. That is my favorite picture in the whole book. :-)
The fact that the frog died totally escaped my kids. My son asked where frogs go i More...

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Dec 06, 2010

Becky rated it:

With the pairing of Mo Willems' words and Jon J. Muth's pictures, I wanted this to be a home run, but I found it a little lacking. As a story of unlikely friends, a la Town Mouse and Country Mouse, it works. As a gorgeous panorama of the changing of seasons, it works. But --

SPOILER ALERT!!!

-- what happens to Country Frog? Why does City Dog move on to a new friend so quickly without anyone explaining frog life cycles, and why couldn't Country Frog have been the kind who bu More...

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Feb 21, 2012

Ashley rated it:

City Dog goes into the country and sees a creature sitting on a rock. It is Country Frog, and he is waiting for a friend... but City Dog will do. So they play games all spring. They play games all summer. In fall, they remember all the fun they had. In winter....

I picked this book up, thinking it was going to be classic weird Mo Willems humour, albeit with a different style of illustration. Booooo hoooo hoooo.... Definitely a sad story, with a bittersweet ending. Good for someone looki More...

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