Cork the muskrat got his name because he's a natural in the water. Not so his friend Fuzz the possum. He sinks like lead. So when Cork invites Fuzz to his house to play, Fuzz regretfully declines. Cork, however, is determined to teach his friend how to swim. Like any landlubber, Fuzz doesn't even want to get his feet wet. So Cork starts by teaching him on the grass. When faced with actual water, Fuzz chickens out and decides it would be safer to crawl along a long branch that reaches almost to Cork's lodge and then jump down. Except it doesn't quite work out that way. Fuzz topples from the branch straight into the lake below. With Cork shouting instructions, he puts the lessons he learned to good use and paddles to Cork's house. Success! Tomorrow brings a new challenge. That's the day Fuzz plans on teaching Cork how to climb a tree. Uh-oh!
Dori Chaconas has fashioned another fun tale about this unlikely duo for beginning readers. Like the best early readers, most of the text is conveyed through natural-sounding dialog and key vocabulary words are seamlessly repeated without appearing obvious.
Lisa McCue is a wizard at portraying appealing looking critters, and her muskrat and possum characters are no exception.
Cork & Fuzz: The Swimming Lesson
by Dori Chaconas
illustrations by Liza McCue
Viking, 32 pages
Published: 2011
Non-swimmer me, with my fear of the water, can relate to this one. I'll be sure to keep off any branches hanging over water.
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ReplyDeleteOne of the Cork & Fuzz books is on our library's summer reading list.
ReplyDeleteThis will be one to remember for the Cybils. Thanks for sharing.
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