One Frog Too Many

A Boy, a Dog and a Frog #6

by Mercer Mayer, Marianna Mayer (Illustrator)

Following the re-release of the first three books in this beloved series, here are the final three classic wordless tales in attractive, low-priced hardcover editions. A Boy, a Dog, and a Frog , the first book in this series, launched Mercer Mayer's distinguished career over twenty-five years ago, and also helped to create the wordless picture book genre. Full of warmhearted mischief and play, the books express the humorous trials and tribulations of friendship and the joy of summertime discovery. Readers will want to collect the entire set.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Fiction, Friendship, Fantasy, Classics

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Mercer Mayer is an American children's author and illustrator. He has published over 300 books, using a wide range of illustrative styles. Mayer is best known for his Little Critter and Little Monster series of books.

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brought back memories of catching tadpoles during summer when I was a boy...

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ian LOVED this one

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! The drawings are cute and the facial expressions and "stories" that the characters tell through just the illustrations is really fun. I hadn't ever seen this series before but my boys and I have died laughing at especially this one. We make sounds and tell the story and just giggle. Priceless.

[SaraKat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute picture book with no words. This series was mentioned by my children's literature textbook as an example of a book that has a plot furthered by the illustrations instead of just with words. This story was a great book to show growing pains in a family experiencing sibling rivalry due to a new addition.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wordless

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title: One Frog Too Many
Author: Mercer and Marianna Mayer
Genre: Children’s

Challenges: To Be Continued…Challenge, PB & J Challenge, 101 Books in 1001 Days Challenge, What an Animal II, Read and Review Challenge 2010, Young Readers Reading Challenge 2010, 2010 Support Your Local Library Reading Challenge, 100 + Reading Challenge, Pages Read 2010, A to Z challenge, What An Animal III Challenge, 2nd Chance Challenge

Rating: 4/5
No. of Pages: 32
Published: 1975


Back Cover: A Boy and his dog are playing in the woods. They meet a little frog. Will the old frog be nice to the new frog?


: This is a great new series (to me) and of course it has frogs in it, so how can I not read it?

Once again the illustrations can’t help but tell the wonderful story of how frog must learn to get along with another frog. He has difficulty as all things new with something different when they were the first. Frog pushes and prods the new frog until he gets lost and boy, dog and turtle look for him. They are awful upset with frog for making it difficult for the new frog.

[Sierra · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Frog Too Many is a simply illustrated, non-worded picture book that tells the story of a young boy and his pet dog, turtle, and two frogs. When they go on an expedition down the river, they tell the bigger frog that they simply don’t have room for him- but that doesn’t go over too well with the frog!

Even without any words, the sketches manage to convey emotion throughout the plot. The storyline is simple, sweet, and rather idyllic, and the simple line work and monochromatic color scheme reflects this. The illustrations are soft and warm-toned, consisting of vertical lines and crosshatches for shading, giving a feeling of comfort. The illustrator manages to convey feeling and tone through the subjects’ eyes and faces, creating an ultimately vibrant, telling story without colors or words.

Additionally, I wonder if the frogs in this story are what influenced the frog cameos in Mercer Mayer's "Little Critters" series

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

This picture book is just too cute for words! One Frog Too Many is the story of a boy with many pets. One day he gets a new frog to add to his collection. There is just one problem, the boy's other frog doesn't like the new one! There are several different occasions in which the old frog shows his dislike for the new one, including biting him and shoving him off the turtle's back. In the end the old frog learns to like the new one after a hunt for the new frog as he goes missing.
Although this book is older it seems to be timeless! The illustrations are so simple but tell the story so well. I have always loved Mercer-Mayer books and this one was no exception. I think this book would be a great book for younger students to make up their own story to or "read" by themselves.

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Frog Too Many is a humorous story of a boy who already has a dog a turtle and a frog as friends but then recieves a package with another frog inside. The frog who is already there is jealous of the new frog and tries to find ways to kick the new frog out of the group. This story has no words but tells itself through pictures. I found myself actually laughing along as I was looking through the pictures. It needed no words because the story told itself through the pictures. I think it is amazing when an illustrator can speak to the readers without having to say a word. I can see this book being used in a classroom as a book to talk about emotions. Throughout the book the characters show several different emotions. You can see them on their faces. This is a very entertaining book and younger readers would enjoy it.

[Aleya Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book! The entire story is wordless but the storyline is easy to follow through the expressions on the characters faces. The entire story is also drawn in black and white with minimal background detail. This book is predictable. Each time the frog does something to get rid of the little frog, he is scolded by the rest of the group. This book is a modern animal fantasy children's book.
This story makes me wonder in the end, how exactly did the frog get back to his friends?

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very cute wordless book. A boy receives a frog as a present, but the problem is that the frog he already has resents the newcomer. The older frog tries to get rid of the new one, but the boy will have none of it and punishes the older frog. The pictures are superb and excellently illustrate the character's expressions. Hopefully this book will stay in publication a long time.

[Angela Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Frog Too Many is an adorable, wordless story. Mercer Mayer does an outstanding job portraying the character's emotions through dramatic facial expressions. This story is simple enough that small children could figure out the story plot on their own. I highly recommend this entire series from Mercer Mayer.

[Jade Detzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wordless book is not only fantastic for beginners who are struggling with comprehension, but also for older students learning point of view. The illustrations are so vivid, you can see character development as well. This book would be great for older students to use and fill in the pages with their own story.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wordless, so clearly not possible for a storytime, and also way too small for a group, but this one is adorable! The illustrations were great, and the expressions on the face of the frog were priceless! This is one that would be fantastic for a one-on-one session or for a child, reading-age or not, to look at all on their own.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love, love, love this darling picture story. My daughter couldn't get into it when she was tiny, though; and then she wasn't interested when she was able to read. It has no words, but the intricate ink drawings are priceless and tell a story so exquisitely.

[Denise Waggoner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is my Happy Place, and never fails to make me smile!! The illustrations are GENIUS!!' This book and the others in the series are WONDERFUL for early readers; they champion observation and allow
Kids to create their own version of the story! SO LOVELY!!!

[Deawna Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such cute book teaching others about love and friendship through only pictures. I would absolutely love having this book in my classroom. It will be a good book to have the students tell you the story as you show them the pictures.

[Dani Kappel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute book about a young boy that has several pets including a frog and adds a second frog to the mix which makes the first frog jealous. This is a picture book only with no words. It's good for narrative skill. I'd recommend it for ages 0-6.

[Mckenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fun book. The thing I loved the most about it was the facial expressions. They did a fantastic job of giving both the boy and the animals great facials. It made it such a fun read. I really think kids would enjoy the silliness of the book as well.

[Victoria Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so cute! the pictures are adorable, and the faces that the characters make are so funny. It would be a fun book to give to a small child and have them read it to you, making up words and saying for each of the characters.

[Sierra Hagar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great book to demonstrate jealousy. Mercer Mayer's Pictures were so well drawn that you could capture the moment so well. Facial expressions of the characters where classic and humorous. Very cute book, one I would definitely get to be in my classroom.

[Kaylyn Bud · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved th illustrations in this book and the message it taught us as well. Good to teach kids about how bad jealousy is and how to overcome it. It's also a good book to teach kids how to be nice to people. I love that in the end the big frog ends up liking the smaller new frog.

[Beth Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and the great art work!! It is a great story for children to enjoy but also learn something from. Mercer Mayer is one of my favorite authors and has been for some time. Great gift idea for family.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I loved most about this super cute story is the artwork. I felt the artwork was awesome. The pictures were well done and the story was great. The frog that kept trying to get rid of the other was hilarious at all his attempts and the little frog kept coming back! Too funny.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best picture books I have ever seen for young children. The illustrations are hilarious and make words worthless to the plot. But, who could expect less from Mercer Mayer?

[Kari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute little wordless book.

[Joe Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

great drawings tell the story in the wordless picture book. The children have to figure out what is going on by looking at the pictures. Can lead to all kinds of discussions.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sequel to A Boy, A Dog, and a Frog. Just as charming. Again, no text, but doesn't need it thanks to the masterful illustrations...

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A refreshingly text free picture book by the legendary Mercer Mayer, in collaboration with his wife Marianna. A good storybook which teaches illustration by example with a theme of bullying.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. No words, but my four year old enjoyed telling me what was going on in each picture.