Pterodactyl Show and Tell

by Thad Krasnesky, Tanya Leonello (Illustrator)

Overview

When a boy brings his pterodactyl to school for show-and-tell, hilarious havoc ensues. The creature's delightfully demented antics, the kids' expressions as they try to avoid the hungry pterodactyl, and the out-of-control imagination of the boy yield a wild and wacky romp.
Kids who dig dinosaurs will devour this preposterous pterodactyl tale written in rhyming couplets and teeming with edgy school-age humor and giggle-inducing illustrations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781936261345
Publisher:	Flashlight Press
Publication date:	10/03/2018
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	496,578
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.40(d)
Age Range:	5 - 7 Years

About the Author

Thad Krasnesky is a writer of children's stories trapped in the body of an army major. He served five tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan as an active duty intelligence officer in the US Army. Thad enjoys volunteering with children and running ultra-marathons. He lives in Lansing, KS, and this is his third picture book.

Tanya Leonello has an MFA in medical and biological illustration from the University of Michigan, and specialized in scientific illustration for the medical, advertising, editorial, and textbook markets for over 15 years. Her second career as a mother provided inspiration to create art for children's picture books. Tanya lives in Dexter, MI.

Editorial Reviews

"One of my favorite things about this book was the little hidden 'Easter eggs' when the class is in reading–pay attention to their book titles!... I was thrilled to be able to read this book. I look forward to reading more from Thad Krasnesky, but I’m crossing my fingers his stories stay prehistoric! 5 stars!" —Grace, age 14, https://kidsbookbuzz.com/product/pterodactyl-show-and-tell/

From the Publisher

2018-07-24

When a boy brings his pet pterodactyl for show-and-tell, chaos reigns in the third grade.

Told from the boy's point of view, the book walks readers through this not-so-typical show-and-tell day, which starts when the pterodactyl almost eats a couple classmates before they've even entered the building. But then Krasnesky takes off the kid gloves, and the children start disappearing: "My teacher had to make some minor changes in attendance, / and social studies looked more like the War of Independence." The illustration that accompanies this last phrase shows the students barricaded behind desks and chairs, one holding an American flag, another playing a (banana) fife, the narrator playing a drum, and several flinging paper projectiles. At recess, the kids all played hide-and-seek (duh!). Leonello gets plenty of practice at illustrating fear, shock, and dismay in her digital artwork. As the day goes on, she masterfully incorporates funny elements that reflect what's happening: In math, there's a circle graph showing the number of students present and those absent (i.e., eaten), and during reading, don't miss the titles of the kids' books. The class, headed by a white teacher, starts the day diverse but ends up populated by only the white, redheaded narrator and his green pet.

Have your teacher read this the day before show-and-tell: Any pet will be more than welcome…as long as it's not a pterodactyl. (Picture book. 4-8)

Kirkus Reviews

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