Tiptoe Tiger

Neon Animals Picture Books

by Jane Clarke

Tiptoe, tiger! Tara the tiger cub is wide awake and wants to play. But Tara’s bouncing and pouncing keeps scaring all the other jungle animals away. Help Tara tread quietly through the jungle so that she can make her way home to her mom and settle down for bed.

Genres: Picture Books, Storytime, Animals, Childrens, Adventure, Kids, Juvenile

Paperback

Published April 7, 2022

About the author

See also pseudonym Hayley Daze.

Jane was born 17 December 1954 and brought up in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England. From 1972 to 1975 Jane attend the University of Birmingham where she earned a combined Bachelor of Arts with honours in archaeology and history. In 1981 she completed a PhD in archaeology from University College London.

On 5 November 1977 Jane married Chemical Engineer Martin Clarke, whose work took them to Mexico, Brazil, the United States, Wales and the Netherlands. Together they raised two sons, Andrew and Robert (both born in Wales).

During her doctoral studies Jane lectured at University College London (1978–79). Thereafter she lectured at University College Cardiff in Wales part time (1981–83), and also taught history at Bryn Hafren School in Barry, Wales (1979–83). After Jane moved with her family to the Netherlands (Koewacht), she began working part time as a librarian at the Antwerp International School. It was during this time when she started her career as a children’s author.

Jane’s husband, Martin, died of a heart attack in Antwerp, Belgium on 20 December 2001. In June 2005, Jane moved from the Netherlands back to Kent (near Deal) in England where she now lives.

Aside from writing children’s books, Jane spends a significant amount of time inspiring children to read and write. She frequently visits schools throughout the UK and Europe to do so.

Jane Clarke is a team writer on three different popular series. Dinosaur Cove (series created by Working Partners Ltd. and published by Oxford University Press), Puddle the naughtiest puppy (series created by Working Partners Ltd. and published by Ladybird Books Ltd.) and Battersea Dogs and Cats Home (created by Random House Children's Books and published by Red Fox.)

Jane has also done support work for various charitable organisations including Ellenor Lions Children’s Hospice, Institute of Cancer Research (The Clapham Grand), Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and READ (promotes reading in Africa).

Reviews

[pawsreadrepeat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's bright and colorful with a wonderful message.

[Lauren Hegedus · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book would be absolutely perfect for a story time setting. Very fun and interactive!

[Anne Hendricks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Precious!

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tara, a little tiger with bright orange stripes, is walking through the jungle at the end of the day. All she wants to do is “bounce and pounce!” On each two page spread, Tara sees part of an animal who may want to play, and when the page is turned the reader gets to see who it is. The author asks us to whisper to Tara to tiptoe, but each time she bounces and pounces or roars, and the butterflies, peacock and owls flee. She does manage to tiptoe when she sees a crocodile lurking in the river, after the author asks us to show her how to tiptoe away. Yay! When Tara suddenly bumps into her mommy, the tired tiger and her mommy cuddle together and the reader is asked to tiptoe away and whisper, “Night, night, little tiger. Sleep tight!”

What a sweet bedtime story, with lovely, brightly colored jungle animals and lots of opportunities to count and guess the animals and to demonstrate quiet whispering and tiptoeing.

[Kelly Carey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This adorable picture book would make a great library or classroom read aloud for the PreK through elementary age listener. Throughout the book readers are encouraged to remind the tiger to tiptoe. When the tiger forgets to tiptoe the results are wonderfully giggle worthy. In addition to offering the tiger behavior cues, young readers are invited to flutter, stretch and whoo. All of the opportunities to interact with the book, that is splashed with bright bold colors, will make it a favorite for readers.

[Jvermeersch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Werkte niet zo goed voor ons. Mijn kleuter vond het wel grappig hoe het alsmaar mis liep, maar voelde zich niet gemotiveerd om zelfs maar één keer tegen de tijger te zeggen dat die stil moest zijn.
Hij was blij toen we het boek bovenhaalden, maar ik denk dat hij het verwarde met Ssst! De tijger slaapt.
Wel leuk kleurrijk vormgegeven.

[Jacob Schmitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this interactive read, Tara the tiger is working on tiptoeing. Yet, it takes patience to tiptoe and she can't resist startling the vibrantly colored peacock, butterflies, owls, and other creatures. Along the way, children are encouraged to flutter their arms like a butterfly, roar like a tiger, and engage in other fun expressions. A great read for toddlers (and even infants) for the winsome kinesthetics and high contrast of orange in the book.

[Terresa Wellborn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, interactive picture book that invites the reader to whisper, flutter their arms like a butterfly, and more, showcasing animals from tigers to butterflies, peacocks, monkeys, owls, and wrapping up with a cozy bedtime scene. A little to directive for my taste to use in a library storytime with littles (as in: do this, do that, follow me), but I'm game to try it and see.

Themes: tigers, jungle, bedtime
Ages: toddler-1st grade
Pub year: 2022

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has been one of my favourite children's book I have read in a long time. My boys go through books quickly but this seems to keep coming out. I love how interactive it is. The storyline asks the children to flap their wings, to whisper, to tiptoe and count. I even read it in my classroom and the response was so positive. I have gone on to find the other books in the series.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tara the tiger is wide awake and isn't ready to go to bed. She wants to bounce and pounce with other animals, but she keeps scaring them away. Help Tara calmly approach different animals. I have always loved Teckentrup's illustrations. These have the colors of the jungle and the bright orange draws your eye. This would be great for an evening storytime.

[Alissa Tsaparikos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a fun adventure for a little tiger before bed that would be a perfect addition to storytime. It blends interactive elements with dialogic reading that would work great with a group. Educational and fun.

[Kiera Beddes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute story for Pre-K, with plenty of opportunities for the children to be a part of the reading. It's a great nighttime story, however, the neon illustrations are a little grating on the eyes.

[Cara Byrne · Rating 5 out of 5]

While it was the fluorescent hue of the cover that drew my daughters in, the engaging story that asked them to participate kept them happy to read this book to the end. A great choice for storytime for preschool children.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun book that will get kids moving in storytime. Great for an animal or action/movement storytime where kids get to participate the storytelling. Love the neon color illustrations. Bright and engaging.

[Sadie Tucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not wildly innovative but it is exactly what I'm looking for when choosing a book for group storytimes. It's interactive, simple, and boasts high-contrast adorable illustrations. A winner!

[M. Hope Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interaction! Cutie illustration! A happy reunion at the end when it seems Tara just can't find anyone to play with! If the category is jungle or the letter 'T', this readaloud suits your storytime needs.

[Angela De Groot · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interactive bedtime story. Definitely a good read aloud - Especially if your littles aren’t as sleepy as you’d like them to be. This story might just help them use up that burst of unwanted restlessness.

[Connie T. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little Tara Tiger wants to play one last game before bedtime but she's too full of energy to approach the other animals quietly, and her bouncing and pouncing scare them all away. This interactive picture book encourages listeners to repeat phrases, tiptoe, flutter their wings, and more.

[Marian Librarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

11/20/25 I would give the actual story 3 stars and the illustrations 4 stars, and we arrive at a rating of 3.5 stars! The kids at storytime liked the interactive elements, whispering "Tiptoe Tiger" and guessing the animals. Perfect for an evening storytime.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fluro orange tiger illustrations. Enough said.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Alexx Burris · Rating 4 out of 5]

a new edition to some of my favorite storytime books! can't wait to share!

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Built in dialogic-reading for those who want the conversational bits without having to make them up. Would make for good toddler storytime book, bedtime.

[Thomas Bell · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not a huge fan of books where you're supposed to tell the character in the book what to do. This was pretty bad.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This would be a great storytime book with guessing and interaction!

[Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new favorite. Very interactive and good for toddlers! At storytime they loved telling Tara to tiptoe and had fun roaring with her too.

[Carrie Jacobs · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite illustrator. 🤩

[Payton Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute, amazing illustrations, amazing crowd participation possibilities -- this will be a huge storytime hit!

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

M liked whispering "Tiptoe Tiger" throughout the book. She also liked that Tara didn't tiptoe sometimes.

[Tiff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Digital illustrations are so bright and lively, pops right out. The peacock definitely so beautiful. Tiger is so eye catching with orange neon colors. Such a lovely book!

[Kelly]

This is actually a pretty calm interactive book. Minus the brightness of the tiger, you can see that it's nighttime and get the feel for it being a quiet story.