The Dancing Tiger

by Malachy Doyle, Steve Johnson (Illustrator), Lou Fancher (Illustrator)

A magical, tender and hauntingly beautiful tale about the power of the imagination and the importance of self-expression.

Malachy Doyle's poetic text tells the story of a girl, a tiger and a great-grandmother. The illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher capture the movement and energy of the language and take the reader on a dance through the changing seasons.

'A resonant, graceful poem ... exhilarating.'
- Sunday Times

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Poetry, Friendship, Storytime, Juvenile

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 2005

About the author

Malachy Doyle is the author of Antonio on the Other Side of the World, Getting Smaller and many other books for children. He lives in Donegal, Ireland.

Reviews

[Luann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is sweet and sort of surreal all at the same time. I kept looking for some sort of symbolism, but I don't think it was meant to be read like that. And I kept wondering why the tiger is only ever seen when the full moon is shining bright. Well, it really doesn't matter. The point is the girl and the tiger enjoying their magical dances together in all seasons. And the moonlight adds a lovely glow to all of the really great illustrations. I love that the girl (now much older) was able to share the experience with her great granddaughter. The rhyming text is really nice and calls out for this one to be read aloud.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was all kinds of awesome.

My daughter, Gwennie, has been into tigers for about 3 or 4 months now. She'll sneak up on you and start gnawing on your leg. Then she looks up at you and says, "Imma scary TIGER! Imma eat you all up, all gone!"

I saw this cover at the library and thought, there's no way I'm passing this up.

The pictures are incredible. The story is moving.

I loved it.

[Steph Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book. Read in reception. This book has amazing illistrations and the use of a tiger dancing really interests the children and makes them want to know more. When reading this book to the children at the end of the day it really helped at calming them down and focusing them.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful and sweet book. The rhyming was lovely as were the illustrations. I think I'll have to work it into one of my pajama storytimes soon - not a bed time book exactly, but it has just the right rhythm and feel.

[NS - Cami Houston · Rating 5 out of 5]

A K-2nd grade read, A little girl discovers a magnificent tiger wandering through the woods one night. In exchange for keeping his existence a secret, he promises to dance with her on every night that the moon is full. The promise is kept, and the two are pictured twirling though the seasons and apparently through the years, as the story concludes with an elderly woman introducing her great-granddaughter to the tiger. The story is told in rhyming couplets that flow smoothly and contain some evocative imagery. They are nicely matched by Johnson and Fancher's luminous oil paintings whose gently smudged outlines emphasize the dreamlike atmosphere.It should have won the Caldecott in my opinion. Excellent details.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute narrative poem about the friendship between a little girl and the dancing tiger in her back garden. It shows how powerful dance can be and that the fact the tiger couldn't have a conversation with her didn't matter because they bonded over dance. Then at the end when the little girl is old and grey and passes it on to her granddaughter, as a reader you feel satisfied and happy that the story isn't really over. You could use this book as a great starting point for some dance sessions, particularly with younger children as it isn't too complicated to understand or interpret.

[Kimberly Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books..... A little girl spies a tiger hiding in the woods. As she promises to keep his being a secret, he invites her to come out and dance with him on every full moon....

The words although few, simple and rhyming, evoke a rich picture of what it would be like to dance through the seasons with a kind laughing tiger.

The illustrations seem to have been rendered in pastel and the quality of the night invokes a sense of reality.

[Kay Mcgriff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this one up based on the title and cover. I could not resist the image of a tiger and little girl dancing under a starry sky. The lyrical paintings and inviting verse invite you to dance along through the seasons, but only when the moon shines bright. It's also an invitation to pass on treasured traditions from one generation to another.

[Jenni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully painted book with moonlight illuminating every picture, Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher bring such magic to this poetic text.

[Melinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations in this book are beautiful.

[Elizabeth P · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book felt like drinking a spoonful of magic and being left breathless in awe.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Told in rhyme, this sweet and magical book would make a great read aloud for a parent and child. Wonderful story!

[Amanda Goodman]

Nice pictures. Explores childhood and dancing and life. Picture book

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply beautiful.

[Christen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful story that deals with the passing of the seasons and time. So whimsical and mysterious!!

[Victoria Von]

I loved the poetic movement of this story and the images match beautifully!

[Gerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

The eponymous tiger is quiet and gentle and while the world is 'dreaming still' he is dancing in the forest on his tiptoes. He is hardly seen, and when he is it is 'when the full moon's shining bright'.

He has a delightful personality but he is dreadfully shy and when spotted by a young girl on one occasion he whispers, 'Please don't mention that I'm here.' o that his wish would be upheld he tells the young girl that she can dance with him 'when the moon is whole' if she doesn't tell a single soul.

The deal is settled and the young girl has a thrilling time as she 'swirled and swayed among the trees', just as the tiger said they would. They enjoyed dancing through the seasons until the young girl got too old so she passed on her happy activity to her granddaughter and said, I'll sit and watch you dancing both, Beneath the starlit sky.'

It is a delightful poem and is beautifully illustrated by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher.

[Maren · Rating 5 out of 5]

let the 4-year-olds come back to storytime for a few weeks so i can read this to children 😭 these sort of brushed-looking soft focusy illustrations do look dated to me now but this one is idiosyncratic enough to transcend its location in time. reminded me of The VVitch also. loved that the protagonist waited for her great-granddaughter to share the dancing tiger. like. were her daughter and granddaughter both non-mystical shitheads? or was she determined to keep the secret of the tiger to herself till she was absolutely unable to dance anymore? much to consider. magic i feel is available to anyone with those who have eyes to see. but especially to little girls and ESPECIALLY to little girls with a great-grandmother to show them 😭😭😭

[Kelly Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book. Mostly full of make-believe magic. Through an adult's eyes it can feel a little creepy and I'm not sure I like the idea of the book suggesting/modeling the behavior of secretly meeting and dancing with a stranger in woods at night. That being said, if you avoid thinking of it that way it's a beautiful tale of a make believe friend.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a good story for today's world. A dangerous stranger in the woods convinces a little girl to keep his existence a secret. Yes, I completely admit that I am reading too much into it, but we read with the eye of now.

[Maya]

Lovely and whimsical.

[Hilary · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had nice illustrations but found the text lacking. A grandmother remembers her imaginary friend and introduces her granddaughter to him. That's all that happens really....

[Harman Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always nice when a book has rhymes, and the art is nice too. But not enough fun with words and again just not enough commas.

[Elizabeth K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the art in this book, and especially got a kick out of the fact that the little girl on the cover looks like my daughter. Said daughter enjoyed the story fairly well. Do people do spoilers for picture books? Anyway, the one element I didn't love is that I, as a general policy, dislike stories that do the "passing of the torch" thing (possibly because of my early established dislike of Peter Pan) where the elderly person turns over the cool thing to a young child. I'm all about having the great-grandmother keep dancing with the tiger ... but it was a little more palatable because at least granny kept hanging out to watch the event.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up solely for the illustrations. The story is sweet, too.

I had an interesting discussion with my 15 year old, who thought it was sad. She viewed the grandma having gotten old as sad; whereas, I saw the grandma as having lived a full life and remembering to share a magical piece of her childhood with her granddaughter. Perspectives really change dramatically with age.

I wonder if the 5 year old will think it sad....

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book reminded me of a story your grandmother would tell you that she did when she was a child, which is actually how the book ended up at the end. It almost seemed like a Native American myth that they would tell around a campfire to their children. Another thing that I thought was great about this book was that it rhymed and most kids love books that rhyme. Also, it went through the seasons, so if you were trying to teach kids their seasons, this would be a great book to use.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

sweet story about girl dancing with a tiger at night in the woods.

[Lindsay]

grandmothers, tigers/wild animals, dancing, seasons

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

The imagination of a tiger dancing at full moons is wonderful and a girl who gets to join him because she will keep his secret.

[GraceAnne · Rating 5 out of 5]

a lovely picture book where the spaces between the words tell much of the tale.