One, Two, Three, Jump!

by Penelope Lively, Jan Ormerod (Illustrator)

I want to be somewhere else, thinks a young frog who is sitting between two stones. he sets off to explore, under the watchful eye of a kindly dragonfly. But there are all sorts of dangers lurking in the garden--from a boy's big feet to a curious cat to a very hungry bird. The frog has to one, two, three . . . JUMP! out of some sticky situations before he finds the perfect spot to play in. Full color.

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Penelope Lively is the author of many prize-winning novels and short-story collections for both adults and children. She has twice been shortlisted for the Booker Prize: once in 1977 for her first novel, The Road to Lichfield, and again in 1984 for According to Mark. She later won the 1987 Booker Prize for her highly acclaimed novel Moon Tiger.

Her other books include Going Back; Judgement Day; Next to Nature, Art; Perfect Happiness; Passing On; City of the Mind; Cleopatra’s Sister; Heat Wave; Beyond the Blue Mountains, a collection of short stories; Oleander, Jacaranda, a memoir of her childhood days in Egypt; Spiderweb; her autobiographical work, A House Unlocked; The Photograph; Making It Up; Consequences; Family Album, which was shortlisted for the 2009 Costa Novel Award, and How It All Began.

She is a popular writer for children and has won both the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Award. She was appointed CBE in the 2001 New Year’s Honours List, and DBE in 2012.

Penelope Lively lives in London. She was married to Jack Lively, who died in 1998.

Reviews

[Kimberly]

1-3 sentences and multiple phrases of text per page. Childlike simple illustrations with lots of solid colors. A dragonfly helps a young frog jump away from different dangerous situations and introduces the frog to a pond, where the frog should be. There is a lot of action involved “1, 2, 3...jump!” and opportunities to ask children questions about the different dangers the frog escapes from (cat, shovel, child’s shoe).

[Library Quine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young frog wants to go jumping and exploring, but dangers present themselves at every turn. Thankfully frog's more worldly-wise friends warn him of each danger just in time, and frog is able to "1, 2, 3 JUMP" to safety. Finally frog finds the perfect place.

[Kelly Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for our Music and Movement program. I plan on having the kids jump along with the frog. This book is great for toddlers through kindergarteners, with its shorter sentences and colorful illustrations.