The Crocodile and the Scorpion

by Rebecca Emberley, Ed Emberley (Illustrator)

Overview

It's hard to make friends when you're always stinging or biting someone...

Down by the great big, brilliant blue river, a not-so-bright crocodile and an equally pea-brained scorpion lived peacefully by themselves. One day, the scorpion realized he needed help getting across the river. Could they control their natural instincts long enough to make it across together?

Rebecca and Ed Emberley offer a sprightly new twist on another classic tale with colorful artwork so bold and bright it snaps off the page.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466844964
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	11/12/2013
Sold by:	Macmillan
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	7 MB
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Rebecca Emberley and her father Ed Emberley, winner of the Caldecott Medal for Drummer Hoff have created the highly praised picture books, Ten Little Beasties, Chicken Little, and The Red Hen for Roaring Brook Press. Their latest collaboration is The Ant and the Grasshopper. Both live in New England - Ed in Massachusetts and Rebecca in Maine.

Caldecott-Medalist for Drummer Hoff and creator of many bestselling books including the how to draw series, Ed Emberley lives with his wife in Ipswich, Massachusetts.
Rebecca Emberley has created more than 40 books for children, including a number of highly successful bilingual books. With her father Ed Emberley she has created books including The Red Hen and Chicken Little. She lives in Kittery, Maine.

Editorial Reviews

08/12/2013
The Emberleys (The Ant and the Grasshopper) reinterpret a grim, lesser-known fable about two baddies whose natures come back to bite (and sting) them. From the get-go, the father-daughter team infuses the narrative with humor, introducing the protagonists in less than flattering terms: “They both had brains no bigger than a pebble, which did not serve them very well, as you will see.” Neither has any friends, since the scorpion is “always stinging things,” the crocodile is “always biting things,” and their victims “seem not to like that.” With good reason, readers will be skeptical when the characters promise not to sting or bite each other while the crocodile carries the scorpion across the river, and after giving into their impulses, each blames the other as they sink—permanently—to the river bottom. The Emberleys’ angular, geometric cut-paper art is more static and less varied than some of their previous collaborations, and the ending (while true to the original) is abrupt. Still, there’s plenty of fun to be had watching these two Darwin Award contenders bring about their doom. Ages 3–7. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

plenty of fun to be had” —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Scorpion is always stinging, and crocodile is always biting. The two pea-brained creatures have no friends. One day, Scorpion desires to cross the bright blue river and asks Crocodile if he will carry him across. After exacting a promise from Scorpion not to sting, Crocodile promises not to bite and begins to ferry him on his back. Not too far out, Scorpion can no longer resist the urge and stings Crocodile, who bites him in retaliation. Together, the two continue to battle deep down to the bottom of the river where to this day they can still be heard arguing as to who was at fault. Bold, stylized artwork by a master team breathes new life into this classic tale. Bright splashes of color imbue the tale with energy that barely keeps it within the confines of the pages. The antics of Scorpion and Crocodile will elicit giggles from readers and listeners. This is a great read-aloud for one-on-one sharing or classroom and/or library story times. Reviewer: Beverley Fahey

Children's Literature - Beverley Fahey

11/01/2013
PreS-Gr 1—The Emberley duo's brilliant and bold cut-paper style perfectly suits this fable about a scorpion and a crocodile who agree to be friends though "neither of them had the slightest idea of what this really meant." The Emberleys give their readers a succinct and telling description of this unlikely pair, each a dangerous predator cursed with a pea-sized brain. The scorpion pitches the idea of friendship to the crocodile so that he can hitch a ride on his back across the river. Each swears that during the crossing they will not harm the other. Neither can manage to keep this promise and they sink to the bottom arguing about which of the two is to blame. This is an appealing fable about the perils of promises and the challenges of friendship. Educators will snap it up.—Jenna Boles, Greene County Public Library, Beavercreek, OH

School Library Journal

2013-09-15
It's all about the squabble in this odd variation on a fable that usually, to clearer purpose, pairs a suicidal scorpion with either a hard-shelled turtle or a vulnerable frog. The narration begins by strenuously emphasizing the stupidity of both creatures--the crocodile's "brain was very small," the scorpion's "stinger was very sharp, but his mind was not," and then again: "They both had brains no bigger than a pebble." The tale puts the scorpion upon the crocodile's back for a river crossing after a mutual promise to refrain from stinging or biting. The scorpion can't restrain himself, though. This leads to a splashy battle and mutual recriminations that stretch on for four spreads, after which both sink to the bottom, where, instead of dying, "you can hear them arguing still…that is if someone has not settled the argument for them." With the color contrast among the green croc, the purple scorpion and the blue river dialed up to the max, the spiky cut- and torn-paper collage illustrations practically glow--but the two animals seem to lose track of each other and just float separately through the last several spreads. The authors provide no source note to the original tale. The usual morals about the consequences of treachery or the inflexibility of innate nature don't apply here in this uncharacteristically unsatisfying retelling. (Picture book/folk tale. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews