25% Off Pre-Order Books with Code: PREORDER25 for Premium & Reward Members Shop Now

The Watermelon Seed

Add to Wishlist

The Watermelon Seed

Hardcover

$18.99

View All Available Formats & Editions

Hardcover
$18.99

View All Available Formats & Editions

SHIP THIS ITEM

Qualifies for Free Shipping
PICK UP IN STORE
Check Availability at Nearby Stores

Available within 2 business hours

Want it Today?
Check Store Availability

Related collections and offers

Want it Today?
Check Store Availability

Overview

With perfect comic pacing, Greg Pizzoli introduces us to one funny crocodile who has one big fear: swallowing a watermelon seed. What will he do when his greatest fear is realized? Will vines sprout out his ears? Will his skin turn pink? This crocodile has a wild imagination that kids will love.

With bold color and beautiful sense of design, Greg Pizzoli's picture book debut takes this familiar childhood worry and gives us a true gem in the vein of I Want My Hat Back and Not a Box.

Product Details
About the Author

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781423171010
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	05/14/2013
Pages:	40
Sales rank:	144,558
Product dimensions:	8.32(w) x 10.12(h) x 0.42(d)
Lexile:	350L (what's this?)
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

Greg Pizzoli is an author, illustrator and screen printer. When not chomping down on watermelon, he can be found in his studio or teaching at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where he also received his MFA. This is his first book. Visit him at www.gregpizzoli.com.

Awards
2011 52nd Communication Arts Illustration Annual : Self Promotion Category
2011 Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators Illustrator Showcase Honor Award

From the B&N Reads Blog

Page 1 of

6 Totally Wackadoo Picture Books That Totally Wonderfully Work

In a genre in which the characters can be human, animal, food-based, or some other completely crazy thing, still it can be hard to stand out from the picture book crowd. Personally, I am already 65% done creating my own illustrated, extremely condensed version of A Tale of Two Cities, told from the perspective of a […]

Each imagined scenario is boldly illustrated on the page in a stripped-down palette of watermelon-y shades of pink and rind green. Children will relate to each catastrophic possibility: a stretched-out stomach, skin that turns pink. Pizzoli legitimizes childish anxieties but also slyly exaggerates each worry to highlight the humor.

The New York Times - Pamela Paul

Classic kid fear: accidentally swallow a watermelon seed, and the result will be a botanical version of what the zombie virus does to folks in The Walking Dead: vines will come out of your ears, and pretty soon you’ll turn pink and wind up a morsel in someone else’s fruit salad. In this first book from Pizzoli, the goal isn’t to assuage readers’ fears, but he does defuse them with help from an adorable bug-eyed crocodile who’s hooked on watermelon (“Ever since I was a teeny, tiny baby crocodile, it’s been my favorite. CHOMP! SLURP! CHOMP!”). Pizzoli’s ostensibly simple cartooning is actually quite clever: he plays with framing and scale to gently spoof the crocodile’s horror-movie imaginings (“It’s growing in my guts!”), while the limited but luscious palette (watermelon pink and green, of course) and a subtly pulpy texture make each spread good enough to eat. It’s an expert debut, and one with a valuable lesson, to boot: a hearty burp can brighten even the darkest hour. Ages 3–5. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (May)

Publishers Weekly

* "[A]n expert debut."—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

* "Children will love this hilarious book. The story has broad appeal, making it a great first purchase."—School Library Journal (starred review)

"A juicy premise...Pizzoli legitimizes childish anxieties but also slyly exaggerates each worry to highlight the humor."—The New York Times

"With a sharp graphic sensibility, vibrant design, and adept characterization, Pizzoli spins the simple premise into a sweet confection, ripe with broad humor."—Booklist

"The illustrations...recall the cheerful stylings of Ed Emberely and Roger Hargreaves. Deliciously bright colors...leap from the page."—Kirkus Reviews

"With a sharp graphic sensibility, vibrant design, and adept characterization, Pizzoli spins the simple premise into a sweet confection, ripe with broad humor."—Booklist Online

From the Publisher

PreS-Gr 1—Children will love this hilarious book. Crocodile has devoured watermelon since babyhood and eats it every chance he gets. One day, however, he swallows a seed. This sends him into a panic. Will it grow inside him and come out of his ears? Will he grow larger and turn pink? The poor crocodile is so worried until he burps up the seed. He vows to never eat watermelon again, but will he be able to resist? The illustrations of the reptile's fear about what might happen to him are very funny and the oversize font on those pages reinforces the emotion in the story. The artwork was created by screen print in pink, green, black, and brown. This simplicity allows readers to fully appreciate the changes in the croc's facial expressions, which artfully contribute to the humor. The story has broad appeal, making it a great first purchase.—Amy Shepherd, St. Anne's Episcopal School, Middleton, DE

School Library Journal

A watermelon-loving crocodile worries over a swallowed seed in this balmy tale. Juicy endpapers of watermelon pink draw readers into this playful tale about a crocodile and his favorite fruit. Oh, how this friendly little croc adores his watermelon. But when he accidentally eats a seed, it's an emergency! The silly reptile frantically envisions the consequences of growing a melon inside one's belly, until his stomach responds. With a large belch, the seed is dislodged, and the croc happily swears off watermelon—until the next delectable slice. The illustrations, done in a graphic, flat-color style with simple linework, recall the cheerful stylings of Ed Emberley and Roger Hargreaves. While Pizzoli uses the computer to arrange his compositions, he takes extra care to hand print the pieces. Done in a three-color printing, the silk screen offers a toothiness to the page, giving fruit, animal and emotions more substance. However, the ingenuity of Pizzoli's work is in the making of the images, rather than in the story itself, which is about as substantial as, well, a piece of watermelon. A humorous vignette with deliciously bright colors that leap from the page. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews

The Watermelon Seed

The Watermelon Seed

Hardcover

Hardcover

Related collections and offers

Overview

Product Details

About the Author

Customer Reviews

Related Searches

Explore More Items

Related collections and offers

Overview

Product Details

About the Author

Related Subjects

Customer Reviews