Toad and the Boy: A Story of Friendship
In loving memory of Maine author and teacher, Jo Schuman.
Toad and the Boy (Schuman, Jo Miles. 2016. Toad and the Boy. Maine Authors Publishing) is a story about friendship. The questions asked in the text are questions that we ask ourselves for our entire lives: how do we find a friend? What qualities make a good friend? What does friendship look like, once we have found a friend? How can we be a good friend, in return? And finally, whilst true friendship is forever, are there seasons of friendship? This richly and warmly illustrated picture book addresses the theme of true friendship through simple and unornamented language and vividly colored, true to life watercolor paintings.
Schuman avoids the use of symbolism and allusion in favor of a straightforward storytelling style. The language she chose to describe the textures, the flavors, the sounds, the smells, and the sights of the woods is simple enough for a toddler to understand and yet complex enough to challenge the imagination of an adult reader. She brings to life the smoothness of the turtle’s shell. The coolth of the wind in the boy’s hair as he rides Swallow’s back. The delicious taste (from Toad’s perspective!) of the pill bugs. The sweetness of the sound of Toad’s trilling.
The plot of the book is a straightforward one: a boy no bigger than a mouse must find friends to help him survive and thrive in a forest habitat where everything is bigger than he is. On his quest for friendship, he first meets Turtle. Turtle turns out to be skittish and uncommunicative; the boy decides that an animal so easily startled might not be a helpful friend for such a small person in a dangerous world. Next, he meets Swallow, gregarious, joyous, wise to the dangers of the old farm, and full of good advice on how to remain safe. But once Swallow’s eggs hatch, she is completely absorbed in the duties of motherhood. Although no less a friend to the boy, her mouth is too full of bugs for her babies to permit her to talk, and she is exhausted at the end of the day. Every mother on earth can relate to Swallow.
These experiences have taught the boy to recognize a true friend when he meets one. He and Toad begin to spend their days together, talking and having adventures. But a conversation about food leads to an important lesson. The boy tricks Toad into eating a food he does not like: a blueberry. The boys learns a lesson of true friendship: it is unkind to play a trick on a friend. All is forgiven, and they go on an adventure together.
Besides absent friends and inattentive friends, there are friends who grow up to become dangerous, and the boy learns this when he encounters Snake. At first, Snake is a fun playmate, and he and the boy run races and wrestle. But before the end of summer, Snake has grown too large to be a safe companion for the boy. When the boy observes Snake catching a frog for lunch, he understands Toad was right, and that he could be in danger. He learns to mistrust Snake, and to trust Toad.
The Snake was not the only danger that Toad and the boy faced together. One night, while out hunting moths, they are startled by a young fox. Toad allows himself to be caught in the fox’s jaws. He secretes a poisonous substance from the bumps on his head, which frightens the fox away from them both for good. The boy wonders, how can he possibly be a useful friend to Toad?
He gets his chance when Toad ends up in a predicament that could cost him his life. Toad finds himself in an old well that he cannot jump out of. If he cannot get out of the well, he will starve to death. The boy has a chance to save Toad’s life, just as Toad saved his: but how? He piles acorns in the well and so that Toad can climb up onto the pile and hop free of the well. They had saved one another’s lives and would be true friends forever.
But friendships have seasons, just as the year does. As summer draws to a close and cold weather begins to set in, Toad must answer the ancient call to hibernate for the winter. The Boy, too, must find a way to survive the coming winter. Swallow’s babies were at last off on their own, and the boy could reconnect with her after a long summer. She offers to carry him on her back as she flies south for the winter. The boy is just in time to say Goodbye to Toad, who must hibernate for the winter. He has learned that even when we do not see our friends because of the changing of the seasons, they are still true friends.
The book is structured into seven chapters. Each chapter treats a single adventure, and each adds to the overall story arc. The text is placed sometimes above, and sometimes below, the illustrations, demonstrating the way the trees and animals as plants of the woods towered over the boy. Thumbnail illustrations bring the facial expressions of the companions to life.
This book is an excellent one to read in the classroom to teach the importance of being kind and gentle to the animals, of being safe with the plants and berries in the woods, of conservation and good stewardship, and of friendship. For recreational reading, it makes a lovely bedtime story to read with kids of all ages.
The dialogue was scintillating and true to the patterns of day to day speech, not in any way stilted or forced or condescending to young readers. The prose flows and ripples like a wood stream. The words carry the sense of danger, the feeling of warmth in friendship, and the poignance of the “farewell for the winter, see you in the spring” with just a few words.
The illustrations are exquisite, and so true to life that one could identify species of animals and variety of plant life through them. The illustrations' rich colors and tender details bring the story to life.
The only weakness I could find in the text is that the boy of the story is shown as the size of a mouse. This makes it difficult for a child, who is considerably larger than a mouse, to relate to. But this is a plot device to permit us to see what a friendship between a small boy and a Toad would look like. The strengths of the book are the gentle lessons taught, not in preachy and didactic language, but in exciting and captivating stories.
The beauty of this text is that it is appropriate for a variety of ages. I have been reading this to my children since they were babies, and they have responded to and enjoyed the story of the animals and friendship and changing seasons. These are things that they know and understand. But the text is also excellent for third and fourth graders who are learning more about the ecosystem, and wetlands, and the many plants and animals in our world. It is also a book that adults can enjoy and benefit from, as the themes of faithful friendship throughout the changing seasons of life are themes that touch our hearts deeply.
On a more personal note, I have read this book with my children many many times, and I cannot read it without becoming choked up. I love it, I am deeply moved by it, I find themes for my own heart in it. I have a passion for sharing the work of local Maine authors who might not have the mainstream recognition that other authors have.
The author, Jo Schuman, was a friend of my children’s grandparents. She was a teacher, an author, an artist, a mum of three, and a naturalist who is involved in wetland preservation. She lived on the coast of Maine with her family, and so portrayedMaine wildlife for Maine young readers.
Shortly before undertaking this paper, I was informed that the author had recently passed away. Jo Schuman devoted her life to helping children learn more about the beautiful outdoors and the creatures that make their home there. This paper is meant to serve as a loving tribute to her work.
Works Cited: Schuman, Jo Miles. 2016. Toad and the Boy. Maine Authors Publishing