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Jump!
When a bug sleeping on a jug is chased by a frog, he has to jump to get away. But then that frog (who’s sleeping on a log) is in for a similar surprise! He’s attacked by a cat…who needs to jump away from a dog…and on it goes, until not even a shark is free from getting a little fright! Building on repetition that’s fun to read and fun to listen to, Jump! is a rip-roaring, read-aloud with simple rhymes and lively illustrations that leap off the pages.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
3 people are currently reading
803 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 189 reviews
January 4, 2010
A good children’s librarian is never satisfied. Never content with his or her lot. It doesn’t matter how many great read aloud picture books we’ve culled for our storytimes. Like Captain Ahab we’re on the search for “the one”. That great picture book that’ll leave ‘em dead in the aisles (not literally . . . that would be a bit dark). We prowl the ALA Conventions, hunt the bookstore shelves, and sniff through professional journals never stopping, never ceasing. Our work is never done. In the course of my own searching, I stumbled on a little book of no extraordinary physical note. Jump! by Scott M. Fischer sits quietly on a shelf. No spangled doodads or pop-up whizbangs explode when you open it. No tinny tunes or scanimation wonders draw you in. It has words. It has pictures. It has pictures with words. It also has a beat and you can dance to it. Find yourself cornered at a three-year-old’s birthday party and you have to read them something fun? Heading up your library’s next toddler storytime and you need a book to get a crowd riled? Grab yourself some Jump! then, my friend. It’s hep. It’s hopping. It’s happening to boot.
It starts, with a bug. “Well, I’m a bug. I’m a bug. I’m a snug little bug, and I’m sleeping on a jug. Until I see a frog, and I . . . . JUMP!” So it begins. The bug now gone (escaped, don’t worry) the frog picks up the narrative, sleeping on a log, until a hound comes along and, you guessed it, the frog jumps. Various animals attempting to nap midday find their slumber consistently interrupted by other animals that may wish them harm. The cat leaps at the frog, the hound goes for the cat, the croc for the hound, the shark for the croc, and finally the whale for the shark, after which he ends the whole tale with a mighty “SPLOOSH!”
This is one of those books where I’m going to advise the grown-ups to read it first before you attempt to speak it aloud to someone else. It isn’t a difficult read in the same way a Dr. Seuss book can be, but there is an internal rhythm to it that you have to get down before you can make it sound natural. One storytime suggestion: Get the kids you’re reading this book to to jump high into the air every time you get to another character jumping. That, I suspect, will go over like gangbusters. Failing that, get ‘em to scream the word along with you. I’m a modern librarian. Screaming in the library’s perfectly fine, as long as it's aimed at a book.
Fischer originally wrote the book as a song, which may account for some of the wording. At first I thought that Fischer was being inconsistent with his rhymes, but then I detected a pattern. The rhymes go bug/bug/jug, frog/bog/log, cat/cat/mat, hound/hound/sound, croc/dock/rock, shark/dark/shark, whale/sail/tale. With the exception of the hound and the shark rhymes, there’s a definite pattern here, that isn’t immediately apparent. A kind of A/A/B, A/B/C, A/A/B, A/B/C rhyme scheme. Unfortunately the hound and the shark kinda throw it out of whack. Not that you’ll care when you’re reading it. Not that kids will care when they’re hearing it. But this may date back to when the book was a song in its first incarnation.
Now I began this review by saying that the cover doesn’t immediately leap out at you (no pun intended) but that’s not strictly true. True, it isn’t augmented with a fine layer of pink patterned sprinkles and sequins, but there’s something pleasing about it. Fischer isn’t afraid of a pure white background. His characters are all painted in thick watercolors of various shades and hues. The cover is a good example of this, its bright green wide-eyed froggy staring up at the little purple and red bug hovering above its head. Characters in this book are big and bold and will read just as well across a crowded room as they will in one-on-one bedtime storytimes. Particularly when you turn the page for the horizontal shark/whale JUMP sequence. I also appreciated Fischer's sense of scale. The last two two-page spreads show all the animals in the air at once, but to get them to be approximately the same size Fischer has the bug placed closest to the reader, with the other animals falling in the distance behind.
Not all songs are natural picture books. You might love “I’ll Sing You One-Oh” but trust me, a 32-page readaloud it does not easily make. Sometimes you get lucky, though. Sometimes you’ll run across just the right book. Jump! is going to make a big splash in my upcoming storytimes, and I doubt not that in libraries, classrooms, and living rooms across the nation folks will have much the same reaction that I had to it. After all, a picture book’s not much good unless it has a load of pep. And pep this book has. Look for it.
Ages 4-8.
It starts, with a bug. “Well, I’m a bug. I’m a bug. I’m a snug little bug, and I’m sleeping on a jug. Until I see a frog, and I . . . . JUMP!” So it begins. The bug now gone (escaped, don’t worry) the frog picks up the narrative, sleeping on a log, until a hound comes along and, you guessed it, the frog jumps. Various animals attempting to nap midday find their slumber consistently interrupted by other animals that may wish them harm. The cat leaps at the frog, the hound goes for the cat, the croc for the hound, the shark for the croc, and finally the whale for the shark, after which he ends the whole tale with a mighty “SPLOOSH!”
This is one of those books where I’m going to advise the grown-ups to read it first before you attempt to speak it aloud to someone else. It isn’t a difficult read in the same way a Dr. Seuss book can be, but there is an internal rhythm to it that you have to get down before you can make it sound natural. One storytime suggestion: Get the kids you’re reading this book to to jump high into the air every time you get to another character jumping. That, I suspect, will go over like gangbusters. Failing that, get ‘em to scream the word along with you. I’m a modern librarian. Screaming in the library’s perfectly fine, as long as it's aimed at a book.
Fischer originally wrote the book as a song, which may account for some of the wording. At first I thought that Fischer was being inconsistent with his rhymes, but then I detected a pattern. The rhymes go bug/bug/jug, frog/bog/log, cat/cat/mat, hound/hound/sound, croc/dock/rock, shark/dark/shark, whale/sail/tale. With the exception of the hound and the shark rhymes, there’s a definite pattern here, that isn’t immediately apparent. A kind of A/A/B, A/B/C, A/A/B, A/B/C rhyme scheme. Unfortunately the hound and the shark kinda throw it out of whack. Not that you’ll care when you’re reading it. Not that kids will care when they’re hearing it. But this may date back to when the book was a song in its first incarnation.
Now I began this review by saying that the cover doesn’t immediately leap out at you (no pun intended) but that’s not strictly true. True, it isn’t augmented with a fine layer of pink patterned sprinkles and sequins, but there’s something pleasing about it. Fischer isn’t afraid of a pure white background. His characters are all painted in thick watercolors of various shades and hues. The cover is a good example of this, its bright green wide-eyed froggy staring up at the little purple and red bug hovering above its head. Characters in this book are big and bold and will read just as well across a crowded room as they will in one-on-one bedtime storytimes. Particularly when you turn the page for the horizontal shark/whale JUMP sequence. I also appreciated Fischer's sense of scale. The last two two-page spreads show all the animals in the air at once, but to get them to be approximately the same size Fischer has the bug placed closest to the reader, with the other animals falling in the distance behind.
Not all songs are natural picture books. You might love “I’ll Sing You One-Oh” but trust me, a 32-page readaloud it does not easily make. Sometimes you get lucky, though. Sometimes you’ll run across just the right book. Jump! is going to make a big splash in my upcoming storytimes, and I doubt not that in libraries, classrooms, and living rooms across the nation folks will have much the same reaction that I had to it. After all, a picture book’s not much good unless it has a load of pep. And pep this book has. Look for it.
Ages 4-8.
March 18, 2022
This book starts small with one little bug. As the fly learns to jump, so do a series of bigger and bigger creatures as they catapult themselves from one page to the next. The rhyme, repetition and lively illustrations encourage kids to use their imagination. Jump! for joy as you pick up this book.
Check this book out at the Villa Park Public Library!
Check this book out at the Villa Park Public Library!
October 22, 2019
This is a book that makes a great read-aloud for story time with its rhymes and repetition, as well as the opportunity for kids to shout, "Jump!" after each scene. However, I really can't stand books like this one where the same thing happens over and over (an animal is chased by another animal and jumps). Great for kids. Not so great for me.
February 24, 2020
The art is cute and full of personality the story is just slightly gruesome with a silly fun happy ending. I was lucky as my edition had Spanish alongside the English line, so I can use it to help my nephew learn Spanish
November 26, 2024
This book made me cry and laugh. It’s a comfort read and a lovely children’s book that fills me with joy and makes me want to yell Salto!
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November 7, 2014In the book “Jump”, students are introduced to a series of animals of increasing sizes. Each animal jumps when a bigger animal is introduced.
This is a picture book because there are colorful and engaging illustrations on each page. There is also a small amount of text on each page.
“Jump” would be most appropriate for Kindergarteners. Each page has rhyming words that students could identify. Students could also repeat the word “jump” throughout the story during a read aloud. In addition, this book could be used to talk about sequence of events as bigger and bigger animals appear in the story. It would be fun to integrate movement into reading this book by having students jump every time that word appears in the story.
This is a picture book because there are colorful and engaging illustrations on each page. There is also a small amount of text on each page.
“Jump” would be most appropriate for Kindergarteners. Each page has rhyming words that students could identify. Students could also repeat the word “jump” throughout the story during a read aloud. In addition, this book could be used to talk about sequence of events as bigger and bigger animals appear in the story. It would be fun to integrate movement into reading this book by having students jump every time that word appears in the story.
March 2, 2018
Way fun. You'll have the kids JUMPING up the food chain with this rhyming text that is simple enough for beginning readers to tackle.
"Well, I'm a bug. I'm a bug. I'm a snug little bug, and I'm sleeping on a jug. Until I see a frog, and I ... (turn page) JUMP! (turn page)
frog -- cat -- hound -- croc -- shark -- whale, providing a perfect start for our "WHALE of a time" story time.
"Well, I'm a bug. I'm a bug. I'm a snug little bug, and I'm sleeping on a jug. Until I see a frog, and I ... (turn page) JUMP! (turn page)
frog -- cat -- hound -- croc -- shark -- whale, providing a perfect start for our "WHALE of a time" story time.
August 7, 2018
It is a silly little children's book about animals that jump and chase after each other with each page being a larger animal than the last. The book is also written in both English and Spanish, like those IKEA directions.
August 3, 2010
The artwork was way too cartoonish for me.
June 20, 2025
Absolutely perfect for storytime.
Used in baby storytime in May 2019.
Used in Little Movers on 6/20/25.
Used in baby storytime in May 2019.
Used in Little Movers on 6/20/25.
August 27, 2015
3* art
3* concept
The perfect book for reading aloud. You can really build up the suspense and everyone yells "JUMP!"
Maybe not just before bed, though, like we do.
3* concept
The perfect book for reading aloud. You can really build up the suspense and everyone yells "JUMP!"
Maybe not just before bed, though, like we do.
August 29, 2016
Great rhyming book with lots of opportunities for interaction. Perfect for phonological awareness.
March 30, 2025
This is a cute cumulative song(!) starting with a bug who happily lays on a jug, until a frog comes along... then the frog lays on a log,* until a cat comes along... etc. The nice thing is a Spanish version is included below the English version, which attempts to keep the rhyming scheme! (It only partly rhymes, but it still sort of rhymes!)
*actually a stump, in the illustration... oops
Esta es una adorable canción(!) acumulativa que empieza con un bicho que se acuesta felizmente en una jarra, hasta que llega una rana... luego la rana se acuesta en un tronco,** hasta que llega un gato... etc. Lo bueno es que se incluye una versión en español debajo de la versión en inglés, ¡que intenta mantener la rima! (Rima solo parcialmente, ¡pero rima un poco!).
**En realidad, un tocón, en la ilustración... ¡Uy!
*actually a stump, in the illustration... oops
Esta es una adorable canción(!) acumulativa que empieza con un bicho que se acuesta felizmente en una jarra, hasta que llega una rana... luego la rana se acuesta en un tronco,** hasta que llega un gato... etc. Lo bueno es que se incluye una versión en español debajo de la versión en inglés, ¡que intenta mantener la rima! (Rima solo parcialmente, ¡pero rima un poco!).
**En realidad, un tocón, en la ilustración... ¡Uy!
September 13, 2017
In the book there are a series of animals of increasing sizes. It starts out with smaller animals and each time a bigger animal is introduced, the smaller animal jumps.
In this book the pictures are colorful, and would keep a child's attention.
There is also little wording on each each page that makes this book easy for kindergarten students.
This book would work best in a classroom when teaching students sequences of events.
In this book the pictures are colorful, and would keep a child's attention.
There is also little wording on each each page that makes this book easy for kindergarten students.
This book would work best in a classroom when teaching students sequences of events.
March 30, 2020
This fun, rhyming picture book will have young readers giggling as a bug is eaten by a frog, the frog is eaten by a cat, the cat is eaten by a hound, an so on. Each animal is gobbled up by a bigger animal. Don't worry, though. It all turns out okay in the end. Children will begin to see a pattern emerge and this would be a fun way to have them make predictions about what will happen next. This could also inspire young writers to come up with their own predictable pattern stories.
August 28, 2017
This book contained lots of repetition and rhyming and would be a great fit for younger children. It also creates some suspense and will have the kids on the edge of their seat waiting to shout "Jump!" with the story.
September 25, 2018
Short read I read for kids. Reminds me of a kid's story my mom told me as a child of a mouse eaten by a cat eaten by a dog, etc til the elephant was scared by a mouse, repeating the cycle.
I like the rhymes and illustrations and would've liked it more as a kid.
I like the rhymes and illustrations and would've liked it more as a kid.
September 9, 2018
We loved this book. It's fun and a great way to get your little ones to participate in the read aloud. Bright bold graphics make this appealing to the little ones. Great way to learn sight word JUMP. We'll be reading this one again.
April 20, 2019
A storytime classic, and easy to incorporate movement into! Each animal is confronted by a larger, scarier animal and jumps away from them. Would work for a frog theme, or I'm sure you could find a way to make it work in many others.
June 4, 2019
I ended up going with Jump, Frog, Jump! since I was more familiar with it. However, I might need to try this at some time.
January 31, 2020
This is an adorable story! It's very simple and easy to read. It would be easy to make it interactive fora story time. The kids could repeat the word "jump," or we could use rhythm sticks and they could click them together each time an animal jumps. Very sweet story.
March 3, 2025
A cute rhyming, repetitive story that can be interactive if you can get the kids to jump whenever the different animals jump in the book. Great literature, this is not, but if you are looking for a simple story to works well as a read-aloud, this is froggy fun.
May 31, 2017
Very cute. 2 1/2 year old was a big fan.
July 14, 2017
Excellent read aloud choice.
September 15, 2017
Movement and Music. Animals take turns being chased by other animals with each animal "Jump[ing]" to get away. Very basic. Okay, but I probably won't use again.
October 17, 2017
Perfect for Toddler or Preschool Storytime. Interactive, rhyming, vocabulary, can add rhythm.
March 27, 2018
This is a cute, funny, repetitive story about animals running away from one another. I think kids would like the repetition and the funny pictures. Will use for frog storytime.
April 22, 2018
See some animals jump! B
May 1, 2018
This book was great for our library laptime (ages 0-2). I had parents bounce their kids every time I read the word "Jump!" Parents loved it, kids loved it, it was a big hit.
June 16, 2018
Great for an all-age storytime!!!! It really does help to "jump" around!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 189 reviews