“Whatever You Wish to Be”: A Review of 10 Little Frogs by Jason Travis, illustrations by Shawn M Travis

 (2021). ISBN: 9798720143657

What if a shooting star sprinkled stardust on ten little frogs, sitting on a log, and each one got their wish?

This is the premise of this delightful homage to the “10 Little…” stories on which so many of us grew up. They combine repetition (which allows for reader participation), math, fun adventures, and a little bit of mystery—all core elements of the best books for children.

What I love most about 10 Little Frogs is that it lends itself to creative dramatics, a subfield of theatre focusing on bringing books to life with young audiences. As a creative dramatist for the past thirty years, this is exactly the kind of book that I love. One by one, as the frogs leave their log to live their wish, the audience—through the full-paged illustrations about which I will talk more soon—gets to see a different adventure or bit of creative expression. There is outdoor adventure (swimming, dog-walking, snake rodeo-riding, picnicking, sky diving, rose-smelling), creative arts (singing, baking, red-carpeting), and spiritual pursuits (gong-banging).

I hope that some of these descriptions peaked your attention, because the wishes are diverse and fun, and it will be interesting for you to see with which adventures your children, students, and other readers most identify.

Before I get into some ideas about creative dramatics with this book, I want to bring attention to the wonderful illustrations. More and more academic studies are showing that illustrations in children’s books are their initial introduction to art, so composition, color, and discerning story from the elements in the frame are all important in learning to navigate and decode visual space. Shawn M Travis (the author’s brother) gives us a lot to love and explore, from the opening illustration of the frog personas of the author and his daughter, to whom the book is dedicated. As each frog enjoys their adventure, there are recurring elements as well as adventure-specific ones. There is a traveling turtle in each (never named in the book, which creates the opportunity to incorporate this character into the story however readers wish), and interesting elements you might not expect. There are grey (well… green) aliens and a flying saucer, a mermaid, a blind squirrel with a walking stick, a Tibetan monk, a unicorn, Bigfoot, a flying dragon, and a leprechaun. The elements of the illustrations that relate to the adventures themselves are witty and wonderful—Frog Sinatra sings, the baker makes a Funfetti cake complete with flies, and the red-carpet walker is at the premiere of 10 Little Frogs the Movie!

So… creative dramatics. I like to do a “day in the life” game where a place and activity are the basis for a group improvisation, with talking or without. Any and all of these ten adventures would work well for this activity. 10 Little Frogs is perfect reading for a trip to the park, the woods, the playing field, or the backyard, where you can interact with nature as many of the frogs do. The reader can also make their own wish and explore, through words and drawings, what their own activity would look like as part of this book. The visual elements I mentioned above also provide ample “what if” moments for improvisational storytelling: What if the aliens took the frog up in their spacecraft? What if the frog decided to ride the unicorn after riding the snake. What if the baker baked the pies eaten in the picnic? I am sure you get the idea.

The author has also provided opportunities within the world of the book to carry on the adventures off the log. The frogs do not just return satisfied and content. They talk about what they experienced with each other! And, as they go to sleep that night, they wonder about what new adventures lie ahead.

This is an opportunity to introduce the importance of story to young readers—telling your own and listening to others’.

10 Little Frogs is a book you will want to return to many times. Each time, young readers will remember more of the core story and take a more active role in the exploration and reading. I can also say with confidence that they will also think and talk more about what adventures in life, big and small, they are most interested in having and why.