Author, Joanne McGonagle, sent me a physical ARC of her children’s book, An Ordinary Toad’s Extraordinary Night.

Description from Goodreads:
An Ordinary Toad’s Extraordinary Night is the story of a young toad named Andrew, pondering whether his life would be more interesting had he been hatched a frog.

Andrew embarks on his first solo hop to ask his grandpa some questions about what it means to be an amphibian. The story is blended with factual information that compares and contrasts the similarities and differences among toads and frogs.

A young reader’s curiosity will be piqued as they consider the unique attributes of the individual creatures that make up a species, perhaps sparking the light of conversation in their hearts and minds.

Review:
I read this with my children (6 & 3) and enjoyed it. The artwork is beautiful and the story is quite educational. However, I’m uncertain of the age range the book is intended for. I found that it was a little long to hold the interest of my two children until the end, but had quite a few words that would likely be too complex for a young reader on their own; as would some of the species break downs, for example the difference between an ordinary and common toad. I can really see this book appealing to a 9 or 10-year-old who is already interested in amphibians.

I respect the book’s goal of informing readers about a less glamours species and trying to spark interest. As the author says, “Frogs and Toads need help too.” It certainly does that. By the end of the book my girls and I had a much better understanding of a toad’s biology. We also appreciated the books theme to love yourself, differences and all. I thought most of the book flowed well, though I could have done with some contractions so that it didn’t feel so formal. There was also some subtle wit, for example the way Andrew’s mother appears to be oblivious to the way his name already marks him as different from his siblings while asking him why he always has to be different. Final call, I’ll have to give it the nod. It’s worth adding to the library shelf.