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Read the Book, Lemmings!
The team behind the New York Times bestselling Wolfie the Bunny and Horrible Bear! is back with with new Arctic characters in this hilarious learning-to-read adventure!
Aboard the S.S. Cliff, First Mate Foxy reads an interesting fact: "Lemmings don't jump off cliffs." But Foxy can't get the lemmings on the Cliff to read his book, too. They're too busy jumping off.
After a chilly third rescue, exasperated Foxy and grumbly polar bear Captain PB realize their naughty nautical crew isn't being stubborn: The lemmings (Jumper, Me Too, and Ditto) can't read. And until Foxy patiently teaches his lemmings to read the book, he can't return to reading it, either!
Aboard the S.S. Cliff, First Mate Foxy reads an interesting fact: "Lemmings don't jump off cliffs." But Foxy can't get the lemmings on the Cliff to read his book, too. They're too busy jumping off.
After a chilly third rescue, exasperated Foxy and grumbly polar bear Captain PB realize their naughty nautical crew isn't being stubborn: The lemmings (Jumper, Me Too, and Ditto) can't read. And until Foxy patiently teaches his lemmings to read the book, he can't return to reading it, either!
40 pages, ebook
First published November 7, 2017
4 people are currently reading
347 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 250 reviews
January 30, 2018
It's been awhile since a picture book has made me laugh out loud like this. And this many times. So delightfully silly innately that it doesn't have to try so hard to impress its audience. Does that make sense? I feel like there are picture books out there that everyone loves that are like "Look at me, I'm so DIFFERENT. My humor is UNIQUE and still CONNECTS with preschoolers! Hey, librarians, have you read me? you're all going to love me and talk about me with each other because I'm just so SPECIAL. I might even win the CALDECOTT."
Yeah, I probably need some counseling.
Yeah, I probably need some counseling.
August 4, 2019
Ship's First Mate Foxy attempts to convince three lemmings that their species isn't required to jump off cliffs - that, in fact, lemmings don't jump off cliffs at all! - in this humorous new picture-book from author Ame Dyckman and illustrator Zachariah Ohora. Unfortunately for our vulpine hero, the lemmings seem incapable of grasping this simple fact, continually jumping overboard and requiring rescue. Finally Foxy loses his patience and demands: why won't these lemmings read the book?!?
Dyckman and Ohora have collaborated before, on Wolfie the Bunny and Horrible Bear! , but this third picture-book venture may be my favorite of the bunch. Read the Book, Lemmings! is absolutely hysterical, especially when read aloud, and the accompanying artwork captures the humor of the text quite nicely. The image of the lemmings cannon-balling off the side of the ship in front of an aghast Foxy reduces me to giggling, as does Captain PB's repeated observation that they must not have read the book. Recommended to Ame Dyckman and Zachariah Ohora fans, and to anyone looking for humorous picture-book romps.
Dyckman and Ohora have collaborated before, on Wolfie the Bunny and Horrible Bear! , but this third picture-book venture may be my favorite of the bunch. Read the Book, Lemmings! is absolutely hysterical, especially when read aloud, and the accompanying artwork captures the humor of the text quite nicely. The image of the lemmings cannon-balling off the side of the ship in front of an aghast Foxy reduces me to giggling, as does Captain PB's repeated observation that they must not have read the book. Recommended to Ame Dyckman and Zachariah Ohora fans, and to anyone looking for humorous picture-book romps.
April 28, 2019
Cute and clever in art and writing.
I've got two more books on deck from the same team, and I'm looking forward to getting to them later today. Picture book binge!
I've got two more books on deck from the same team, and I'm looking forward to getting to them later today. Picture book binge!
February 17, 2018
Head out on an Arctic adventure aboard the S.S. Cliff with Foxy, Captain PB and three little lemmings. Foxy is trying to read a book about lemmings but the problem is that the lemmings themselves haven’t read it. As Foxy reads aloud that lemmings don’t actually jump off of cliffs, the three lemmings immediately jump overboard. Foxy tries again to show them the information, but still, the three lemmings jump overboard again. Eventually Foxy realizes why the lemmings won’t read the book, but they have one more trick for him! Dyckman has an impeccable sense of timing in this picture book, creating moments of true hilarity that are a pleasure to share aloud. The book is simply written which adds to its appeal. The illustrations have great sense of style to them with a pink sky, deep ocean-blue water, and lemmings that wear hats so you can tell them apart. Funny, deeply silly and heart warming, despite the cold water. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
November 9, 2018
No, the title is not an instruction for some excitable fandom. This is a book about actual lemmings, who continually find themselves plunging into the sea because they are just so darn stupid.
While the premise is cute, there seems to be a bit of a plot hole: the lemmings aren't actually jumping off cliffs. They're jumping from a cargo ship called the S.S. Cliff... but since the lemmings can't read, how do they even know what the ship is called? Hmm...
The pictures are just okay for me; I'm not a big fan of the limited colour palette. I also don't quite believe that the lemmings, as stupid as they are, could learn to read in one afternoon. Let's not give kids unrealistic expectations here.
The title is actually the most amusing part of this for me. Kids might enjoy the repetitive nature of the jumping and rescues, but I found it all just a little bit silly.
Quotable moment:
While the premise is cute, there seems to be a bit of a plot hole: the lemmings aren't actually jumping off cliffs. They're jumping from a cargo ship called the S.S. Cliff... but since the lemmings can't read, how do they even know what the ship is called? Hmm...
The pictures are just okay for me; I'm not a big fan of the limited colour palette. I also don't quite believe that the lemmings, as stupid as they are, could learn to read in one afternoon. Let's not give kids unrealistic expectations here.
The title is actually the most amusing part of this for me. Kids might enjoy the repetitive nature of the jumping and rescues, but I found it all just a little bit silly.
Quotable moment:
January 13, 2018
Original and creative! Readers will more fully appreciate the story if they understand the connotations of calling someone a "lemming" AND if they are familiar with "lemming migration". I didn't know, but was inspired to research and learned that the myth of lemmings committing mass suicide by jumping off cliffs was largely due to a show that Disney produced in 1958 called "White Wilderness." "According to a 1983 investigation by Canadian Broadcasting Corporation producer Brian Vallee, the lemming scenes were faked. The lemmings supposedly committing mass suicide by leaping into the ocean were actually thrown off a cliff by the Disney filmmakers." One can certainly enjoy the story without that background, but it was all the more enjoyable to me with this background.
I love that the lemmings are named Jumper, Me Too, and Ditto! And of course, I have to love that Foxy teaches the lemmings to read. The illustrations are fun and tell a lot of the story.
I love that the lemmings are named Jumper, Me Too, and Ditto! And of course, I have to love that Foxy teaches the lemmings to read. The illustrations are fun and tell a lot of the story.
January 22, 2018
This book was interesting. I am not quite sure if I enjoyed it or not. I would definitely say that this book is for children who are Preschoolers or a bit older. I do not believe that Toddlers would sit for the duration of the story.
June 12, 2020
Funny and not just beautifully illustrated, but beautifully designed - some of the nicest paper I've encountered in any book, a pleasure to even hold.
January 24, 2018
Foxy reads a book on lemmings and finds out they don't really jump off cliffs. Unfortunately, it seems the lemmings didn't read the book. Foxy tries to explain things to them, and tries to get them to read the book. But there is a problem.
Does anyone have a lesson plan that includes teaching the meaning of ditto? I highly doubt it. But kids have to learn what it means somewhere. Here's a book just for that. The third lemming constantly says ditto. I love the patient and caring fox who is continually rescuing the lemmings and trying to help them out. Kids will be delighted by the silly antics of the lemmings. You'll learn what ditto means if you didn't know. Oh, and you'll also learn that it is important to know how to read and discover that lemmings don't usually jump off of cliffs (despite the common misconception). An educational and fun book featuring some cute little lemmings in an arctic sea port also being visited by a sailor fox and bear.
Does anyone have a lesson plan that includes teaching the meaning of ditto? I highly doubt it. But kids have to learn what it means somewhere. Here's a book just for that. The third lemming constantly says ditto. I love the patient and caring fox who is continually rescuing the lemmings and trying to help them out. Kids will be delighted by the silly antics of the lemmings. You'll learn what ditto means if you didn't know. Oh, and you'll also learn that it is important to know how to read and discover that lemmings don't usually jump off of cliffs (despite the common misconception). An educational and fun book featuring some cute little lemmings in an arctic sea port also being visited by a sailor fox and bear.
November 6, 2017
Cute, silly, madcap fun as lemmings have to learn the hard way they really don't leap off cliffs. Reading is necessary, even for lemmings!
Veg*n parents note: The polar bear character is a fisherman, and a bucket of dead fish must be repeatedly utilized to rescue the lemmings.
Veg*n parents note: The polar bear character is a fisherman, and a bucket of dead fish must be repeatedly utilized to rescue the lemmings.
November 8, 2017
This is a hilarious premise!
March 20, 2018
This one made me laugh out loud, repeatedly.
August 1, 2018
Lemmings don't really jump off cliffs on a regular basis, other than in Disney nature documentaries. The thing is, did anyone ever try to teach the lemmings about the truth of this destructive rumor about lemming behavior?
The cover has a clue to one of the reasons that lemmings have trouble learning this concept, but their reactions to certain words within the book are quite funny. It's very cartoony, very silly, and the payoff to the story is that sometimes it's dangerous to teach lemmings to overcome their folkloric limitations.
The cover has a clue to one of the reasons that lemmings have trouble learning this concept, but their reactions to certain words within the book are quite funny. It's very cartoony, very silly, and the payoff to the story is that sometimes it's dangerous to teach lemmings to overcome their folkloric limitations.
November 24, 2017
This book is a scream! Told and drawn in a very expressive way so that the action jumps off the page - just like those pesky lemmings. You could practically hear their tiny voices: Jump? I'll jump! Me too! Ditto! So hilarious, but also so annoying if you have to fish them out every time.
The lemmings reminded me of the mice who constantly annoy Mother Bruce - and you know how much I love them.
This would be a really funny read-aloud, especially if you're good at doing several different voices at once.
The lemmings reminded me of the mice who constantly annoy Mother Bruce - and you know how much I love them.
This would be a really funny read-aloud, especially if you're good at doing several different voices at once.
May 14, 2021
Another laugh out loud funny collaboration by Dyckman and OHora. A fox on a huge whale shaped boat has just read a book about lemmings that says that they don't jump off cliffs. He tries very hard to get the lemmings to read it, but they are too busy jumping off the boat to pay attention. A fun picture book to read out loud or independently with a nice plug for the benefits of reading.
February 7, 2018
Fox reads a book that says lemmings don't jump off the cliff, but every time he says it, the three lemmings jump off the boat and have to be rescued. He asks why they didn't read the book. They say they can't read. So fox teaches them to read.
December 6, 2020
This was really funny, I loved that the speech bubbles were often at Kait’s reading level and that the illustrations were fun, involving reorienting they book at one point. We all enjoyed this one equally.
November 25, 2017
I could read same Dyckman's books to my kids over and over, and they would sit and listen like it's the first time. This one is no different. Love these little lemmings!
February 6, 2019
My kindergarten students got a kick out of this one.
May 2, 2019
This is kind of . . . weird. But in a good way! Fun pictures. I loved the whale cargo ship and
July 30, 2019
This book is super adorable! Children will love the random and fun surprises!
October 8, 2021
Jump? Okay! Made me laugh more than once! Thanks Amy!
Read
January 3, 2018I like it!
January 28, 2018
What a hoot! Love all the jokes and funny business, from the cover art, to case cover, to names of the lemmings!
March 6, 2021
This is a very cute book!
September 22, 2022
Silliness.
December 4, 2022
This book made me Google lemmings, and now I'm fascinated by what I thought I knew but didn't know.
January 15, 2018
Hilraious and lovely mid-elem read aloud.
Read
November 13, 2017Love the artwork and the silly premise! I mean, of course the lemmings didn't read the book: they don't know how to read! :) :)
January 15, 2023
Reading Ame Dyckman is always a pleasure! And now that I know Zach, I want more!!
Literally laughed out loud.
Literally laughed out loud.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 250 reviews