The Thirsty Moose

by David Orme

When a child is learning to read, every word counts! In this fun story, Big Moose is so thirsty that he drinks up all the water in the river! How will the animals that live in the river react? The book is based on a Native American folktale, and the stor

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

32 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2004

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A selfish moose is determined to drink ALL THE WATER, no matter what effect its depletion has on other denizens of the forest. A morality fable based on a Native American folktale - this should be read by Republicans everywhere.

[Makeba Nugent]

This book is about a big moose who was thirsty and travels to the river to drink some water. However he was so thirsty that he "drank and drank" until "the water went down and down". This meant that the river, which is home to the beaver, muskrat and the fish would be destroyed, if he kept drinking. The animals pleaded with him to stop drinking the water, "but big moose wouldn't listen". Eventually,he did listen when the smallest fly, told big moose to "stop" and "flew into Big Moose's ear and started to bite!". Big Moose ran away from the river and never returned.

The story deals with a number of issues. It deals with the characteristic of selfishness and not considering the feelings of others, due to your own actions. Big Moose kept drinking, even though he knew that the other animals needed the water as much as he did.It also deals with the importance of listening to others, maybe if Big Moose had listened to the other animals, the fly may not have flown into his ears and bitten him. Another point made in the story, is that the size of a being or in this case animal, does not determine the resilience of that being, as the fly was minute in comparison to Big Moose, but the fly chased big moose away and taught him the importance of listening to others.

I feel that this Early years book is a good start to challenging the minds of toddlers and pre-school children, to start thinking and exploring their emotions and the concepts of sharing, being kind and thoughtful and listening to others. This can be shown through the many times I have read this book with my two year old daughter, since she was twelve months plus. Through her development into a toddler, it is clear that this book is engaging, has attractive illustrations in which my daughter is able to recognize what was going on in the text and through her development she is now able to repeat the text in the story and has an understanding of how the story develops and what the characters are like by saying "naughty big moose", this proves that she has an understanding that big moose was not displaying actions of kindness and thoughtfulness in the story.

I think that this is a very good Early years picture book, which engages very young children and has a strong moral, which could be discussed with children in the classroom during P.S.H.E lessons or circle time sessions.

[Samantha Penrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Be considerate of others.
Be considerate of nature.
Don't take more than you need.
What goes around comes around.

Cute illustrations.
I love that there are discussion questions in the back of the book.

[Hiba Yuki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has strong morals, but I feel like it hasn't been explored the right way for the intended age group.
Having read the other reviews, I will give it another go, and see if I can change my mind about it.

[IfCatsCouldRead · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thirsty moose turns out to be a selfish bully. He is asked to stop (with reasons for asking) and he refuses.
Used this book to talk about standing up for others (like the fly), being kind, and sharing.

[Debra Golden · Rating 3 out of 5]

fun book for young children - preschool to K-1
How do we respect others?
how do we share
How do we listen

[Victoria Clanton · Rating 5 out of 5]

The selfish moose drank all the water and left none for his friends! Our students learned that thinking about others is always best and to never be selfish!

[Rose Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is based on an Native American folktale. It can be used to introduce children to the ecosystem and conservation, listening and co-operation. Second- or third-grade reading reading level.

[AliceinWonderland · Rating 5 out of 5]

- As an adult trying to learn Spanish, I found this book not only delightful, but surprisingly deep!!
- But then again, why should I be surprised, as it's based on a Native American folktale and encompasses themes of sharing, being a part of the ecosystem/environment, the downfalls of greed/selfishness and that small things can make a big difference!
- Wisdom can be found in surprising places.

[Elena Traduzioni Oceano Mare · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute graphics. The little animals are way cute!