The Tale of Ferdinand Frog

By: Arthur Scott Bailey

Narrated by: Tom Weiss

"The Tale of Ferdinand Frog" is a somewhat short story about a typical frog who has an amazingly wide mouth and queer, bulging eyes. Ferdinand is somewhat unflappable and hard to anger. Like many of Bailey's characters, he believes that others need to able to do the things he does. Like all frogs, his tongue is attached at the front so he can catch insects and Ferdinand doesn't understand why other's tongues aren't attached like his. Arthur Scott Bailey, the author, gives each of Ferdinand's friends and acquaintances a unique personality, not unlike that in the wild, and like any good children's book, teaches us about their unique behaviors while promoting good moral values.

Arthur Scott Bailey was an American writer who penned more than 40 children's books. Mr. Bailey centered all his plots in the animal, bird, and insect worlds, weaving natural history into the stories in a way that won educators' approval without arousing the suspicions of his young listeners. He made it a habit to never "write down" to children and frequently used words beyond the average juvenile vocabulary, believing that youngsters respond to the stimulus of the unfamiliar.

Public Domain (P)2021 Tom Weiss