And Tango Makes Three: Book and CD

by Justin Richardson, Peter Parnell, Henry Cole (Illustrator), Neil Patrick Harris (Read by)

Overview

The heartwarming true story of two penguins who create a nontraditional family is narrated by award-winning actor Neil Patrick Harris in this book and CD package.

At the penguin house at the Central Park Zoo, two penguins named Roy and Silo were a little bit different from the others. But their desire for a family was the same. And with the help of a kindly zookeeper, Roy and Silo got the chance to welcome a baby penguin of their very own.

Releasing in time for the tenth anniversary of And Tango Makes Three, this book and CD edition features narration by renowned actor Neil Patrick Harris.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781481449946
Publisher:	Little Simon
Publication date:	06/02/2015
Edition description:	Book and CD
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	11.70(w) x 11.50(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD520L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Justin Richardson, MD, is the coauthor, with Peter Parnell, of the award-winning picture book And Tango Makes Three. Dr. Richardson is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Columbia and Cornell and the coauthor of Everything You Never Wanted Your Kids to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid They’d Ask). Dr. Richardson and his advice have been featured in The New York Times and The Washington Post, on the Today show and NPR’s Morning Edition, and in numerous magazines. Dr. Richardson lectures to parents and teachers on parenting and the sexual development of children.

Peter Parnell is the coauthor, with Justin Richardson, of And Tango Makes Three. He is a playwright whose plays have been produced at the Public Theater and Playwrights Horizons in New York City, the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, and the Seattle Repertory Company, among others. His play QED was produced on Broadway. He has written extensively for television as a producer for both The West Wing and The Guardian; he has also written episodes of Maurice Sendak’s series Little Bear. He lives in New York City.

Henry Cole has written and illustrated more than 150 books for children, including Spot, the Cat; And Tango Makes Three; Oink?; and Little Bo in France. He is also the illustrator of With a Little Help from My Friends by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. A former elementary school teacher, he now writes and paints full time.

Editorial Reviews

In this true, straightforwardly (so to speak) delivered tale, two male chinstrap penguins at New York City's Central Park Zoo bond, build a nest and-thanks to a helping hand from an observant zookeeper-hatch and raise a penguin chick. Seeing that the penguins dubbed Roy and Silo "did everything together. They bowed to each other. And walked together. They sang to each other. And swam together," their keeper, Mr. Gramzay, thinks, "They must be in love." And so, when Roy and Silo copy the other penguin couples and build a nest of stones, it's Gramzay who brings a neighboring couple's second egg for them to tend, then names the resulting hatchling "Tango." Cole gives the proud parents and their surrogate offspring small smiles, but otherwise depicts figures and setting with tidy, appealing accuracy. Unlike Harvey Fierstein's groundbreaking The Sissy Duckling (2002), also illustrated by Cole, this doesn't carry its agenda on its shoulder; readers may find its theme of acceptance even more convincing for being delivered in such a matter of fact, non-preachy way. (afterword) (Picture book/nonfiction. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews

"A charming and adorable story that proves love isn't confined by a set of rules of what's right or wrong. Love is Love.

Nathan Lane & Devlin Elliot

"A little miracle for children. Funny, tender, and true, the story of Tango will delight young readers and open their minds."

John Lithgow

*"Cole's pictures complement the perfectly cadenced text...Those who share this with children will find themselves returning to it again and again...for the two irresistible birds at its center and for the celebration of patient, loving fathers who 'knew just what to do.'"

starred review Booklist

"This wonderful story of devotion is heartwarming proof that Mother Nature knows best."

Harvey Fierstein

"While this could introduce a discussion about various kinds of families, it's also a cheerful and endearing animal story that should please any aficionado of the zoo's penguin enclosure."

BCCB

"Tango Makes Three rises above the message it carries and becomes the rarest of birds, a 'message book' that's also a really good story."

NYTBR

"A touching and delightful variation on a major theme."

Maurice Sendak

"Charming! And Tango Makes Three proves that all kinds of love can create a family."

Wendy Wasserstein

"A touching and delightful variation on a major theme."
--Maurice Sendak

"This wonderful story of devotion is heartwarming proof that Mother Nature knows best."
--Harvey Fierstein

"Charming! And Tango Makes Three proves that all kinds of love can create a family."
--Wendy Wasserstein

"A little miracle for children. Funny, tender, and true, the story of Tango will delight young readers and open their minds."
--John Lithgow

From the Publisher