The Viper

by Lisa Thiesing

The Viper is based on an old tale Lisa Thiesing used to hear at summer camp. Peggy the Pig gets a weird phone call. "I am zee Viper!" the voice says. Poor Peggy! She is scared. Who - or what - is the Viper? Can you guess? Suspense builds. The answer is surprising and silly, just like this book.

Genres: Mystery, Picture Books, Childrens, Humor, Animals

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Alana Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a piggy that receives a threatening call about a viper coming in one year. The book counts down the time between the first phone call and the rest of the class up until the viper finally comes. It turns out to be a lot less scary than the piggy expected! This is a reader book making it accessible to students who are still learning to read. It could also be used to talk about time and intervals because the book acts as a count day of months, weeks, days, hours, and minutes. It is suitable for first and second graders, although they mind find reading the "accent" (see vs "zee") difficult/confusing at first.

[Cara Byrne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Peggy the pig is scared by mysterious phone calls from the viper who threatens to arrive in closer and closer time increments. This was a slightly bizarre but entertaining and engaging story for my 5-year-old.

[Kitty · Rating 5 out of 5]

We used to tell this as a spooky story, but this is hilarious.

[Joanna Donkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son thought this book was hilarious.

[Kathleen Meacham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the way these books fold in learning without kids even realizing it.

[Miss Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A man calls for one year saying he will arrive on a certain date and calling himself the viper. Why is calling and who is he? Nice letter V. Elementary and up

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

One day Peggy the pig gets a call out of the blue from the Viper saying "I am zee Viper. I vill come in 1 year." Peggy's alarmed and not too sure who that is, but figures that it's 1 whole year away. Then Peggy gets calls closer to then from the Viper. She looks up Viper in the dictionary and learns that a viper is a snake, and becomes more uneasy. Great suspenseful easy reader that is a bit scary but not too scary.

[Monster]

Lisa Thiesing presents early readers with a not-so-scary version of the campfire “jump” story called The Viper. With friendly cartoonish illustrations and foolish, likable Peggy the Pig as a main character, the story is more silly than suspenseful. Thiesing also uses the story to introduce concepts of time, including years, seasons, months, days of the week, minutes, and seconds, but her handling of this seems confusing and inconsistent. As the arrival of the Viper gets to its final countdown, the story picks up, with its funniest and most suspenseful moments right at the very end. The last moments of the story make this a great read-aloud. The “bong bong bong” of the clock just as the Viper raps on the door will make kids jump, and the punchline to the story, when read out loud, will make them giggle. Beginning readers who find the traditional easy readers bland will find a lot to appreciate in Thiesing’s work, and librarians will find this book a refreshing addition to their collection. Recommended.

Review by Kirsten Kowalewski

[Stephanie Skolmoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great book to introduce a child to the “art of suspense!” Peggy receives a call from the “viper,” who will come in one year. Who’s the “viper,” she wonders. But with 365 days to wait, she figures there is nothing to worry about. One month away and Peggy receives another call from the “viper.” He will be there in one month. She searches the dictionary to find out what a “viper” is and then becomes quite worried. More calls from the “viper” and Peggy is very frightened. Now he is at the door! What will happen?!?!?

My granddaughter has asked to hear this book over ten times in just a few days. She loves the gruffness in our voice as we read the “viper’s” part. She loves the anticipation as she turns each page. There is a hearty laugh at the end!

It’s a great way to talk about suspense and anticipation. Fearing of the unknown affects us all. What are ways we can work through suspense/fear so it doesn’t consume us? This is a great discussion for young and old.

[Davis Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 7 year old recently read this book. It states that it is recommended for grades 1-3 depending on reading level.

This is a children's spin to the old tale The Viper. I found the book very funny since I have heard the old tale several times when I was younger. My son had some issues reading the accent. Example: vill instead of will. I also had to explain the reason behind the accent and what each word that had the accent was. After explaining it to him, he thought it was funny, but I don't think he really got it. We read it 3 times in a row, and I think he finally started to "get it". I think it is a nice spin on the tale, but would be more suitable for a time when they aren't learning to read, due to not understanding the w's turned to v's and th's turned to ze's. Beside that, my son thought it was funny and had no issue reading it except for the accent areas.

[Sandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all time favorites! This book begs to be read aloud! Grab your kiddos and give it your best hissing snake voice and get in on the fun.

Peggy the Pig receives a call that "the viper" is coming. Terrified, she starts to make plans to protect herself. Then another call. Then another. This suspenseful beginning reader will keep everyone on the edge of their seat...that is until they fall out of it with laughter!

I booktalked this book for 2 years straight in grades K through 3 and it was a hit every single time! This one definitely has a spot on my all-time favorites list.

Happy hissing! :)

[Shelby Troutman · Rating 5 out of 5]

VERY FUNNY! Would be great for a Halloween or April fools joke. The caller says they are the 'viper' and will be there in a certain amount of time. In the end the 'viper' is simply the window wiper!

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun story that I look forward to sharing with my 1-3 students at Halloween!

Update...we dimmed the lights in the library and read by flashlight. It was a big hit, especially with the first graders!

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so funny! All through the book, Peggy (i think) the pig is getting a phone call from "zee viper" and she freaks out. i need to buy this book...

[Saralyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is hysterical to read. Love the ending, which makes it more fun to read out loud. I won't say more, but it's great.

[OhGee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrills and chills to the very end!

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute. "I am the vindow viper!"

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute - my kids get this out of the library every few months.

[Cassy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really fun book to read to my girls....they thought it was hilarious!!

[Darcie Caswell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Approx 1st grade or second, depending on reading level

[Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book because it has a surprise ending with a funny twist. Every single child I have given birth to has smiled at the end of this book and gotten the joke about the "viper."

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

My newly-seven-year-old son read this book on his own, and he even understood the humor enough to find it funny. Seems like a winner to me.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite read-alouds! It's a built-in joke.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this children's book. It was hilarious.