There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Trout

by Teri Sloat

illustrated by Reynold Ruffins

(New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1998)

Hardcover, 32 Pages, Children’s

ISBN: 9780805069006, US$15.95

ABCD Rating: ACQUIRE

There was an old lady who swallowed a trout

That splished and splashed and thrashed about.

From the Cover: Everyone has head about the old lady who swallowed a fly, but there is something particularly fishy about this old lady. … Beautiful illustrations in this story capture the scenery and wildlife of the Pacific Northwest. The buoyant text jumps along as the old lady swallows a salmon, an otter, a seal, a walrus, and more, until eventually she swallows the entire sea and the trout swims free! With a unique and fascinating setting, this pure flight of fancy gives a fresh look to a familiar poem.

My Review: This is one of those gems of a book that I found at the last minute in the library. I was in the process of checking out at the self-check out station and this book was being displayed at the folklore section (which is next to the check out) and the title so tickled my fancy that I scooped it up. Little did I know that it would soon become my childrens’ favorite book of 2009? No joke.

My kids have absolutely fallen in love with book, so much so that we have bumped it to the top of Book to Buy list for them. They love reading it, and it has become a must read for bedtime … each and every night. The big plus, though, is the fact that even though I have more or less read it every night at bedtime for the last month not only have they not grown tired of it, but I have not grown tired of it! And that is a major plus.

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Trout is a simply marvelous book. I absolutely love the different spin on the old poem and (at the risk of spoiling) the fact that the Old Lady doesn’t die at the end of this particular incarnation of the poem is a very good thing. The other aspect of this book that I absolutely love is the artwork. Ruffins’ Pacific Northwest-esque art is delightful and adds to this book the air of legend, like it was an Inuit or First Nations legend (which is probably why it was in the folklore section of the Children’s wing of the library).

This is a very fun book, and one that I highly recommend for the child in your life; if they are anything like my son and daughter they will fall in love with this book.