Kissing Coyotes

Book Review:

This book is a fun children's book that comes with a strong moral lesson. It is about a boastful jackrabbit that claims to be so very courageous. This bragging gets the jackrabbit into big trouble when he is asked to prove what he states he is able to do. As he sets off to lay truth to his tall tails, he has several mishaps that end up bringing his boasts to reality. Only by the hair of his teeth does he escape becoming coyote lunch, the bite of a rattlesnake, the recipient of the stink of a skunk, or being trampled by a herd of longhorn cattle. After living to tell about his adventures, he still has not learned his lesson. In the end, he once again brags about being able to complete another impossible task and is asked to "prove it."

Marcia Vaughan uses creative ways to capture the imagination of children. The ending is left open, letting them use their minds to come up with a different ending. Kissing Coyotes also teaches the importance of how much trouble bragging can get you into. The illustrations by Kenneth J. Spengler are done well enough to make everyone smile. The characters are larger than life, the colors are bright and the story is enhanced by the emotions that Spengler portrays in his illustrations.

This book is appropriate for many grade levels; the smaller children will love the illustrations and the older children will understand the moral of the story. I would recommend it to parents and teachers alike.

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