William Steig

From the incomparable William Steig, creator of Shrek , comes a story that proves even a fox can be out-foxed by a clever mouse in Doctor De Soto , a Newbery Honor Book."Doctor De Soto, the dentist, did very good work." With the aid of his able assistant, Mrs. De Soto, he copes with the toothaches of animals large and small. His expertise is so great that his fortunate patients never feel any pain.Since he's a mouse, Doctor De Soto refuses to treat "dangerous" animals--that is, animals who have a taste for mice. But one day a fox shows up and begs for relief from the tooth that's killing him. How can the kindhearted De Sotos turn him away? But how can they make sure that the fox doesn't give in to his baser instincts once his tooth is fixed? Those clever De Sotos will find a way.Doctor De Soto is a 1982 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1983 Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Honor Book for Picture Books, and a 1983 Newbery Honor Book.Made into an animated short film in 1984 by American director and animator Michael Sporn.

One rainy day, Sylvester finds a magic pebble that can make wishes come true. But when a lion frightens him on his way home, Sylvester makes a wish that brings unexpected results.

Shrek, a horrid little ogre, goes out into the world to find adventure and along the way encounters a witch, a knight in armor, a dragon, and, finally, a hideous princess, who's even uglier than he is!

Abel's place in his familiar, mouse world has always been secure; he had an allowance from his mother, a comfortable home, and a lovely wife, Amanda. But one stormy August day, furious flood water carry him off and dump him on an uninhabited island. Despite his determination and stubborn resourcefulness--he tried crossing the river with boats and ropes and even on stepping-stones--Abel can't find a way to get back home. Days, then weeks and months, pass. Slowly, his soft habits disappear as he forages for food, fashions a warm nest in a hollow log, models clay statues of his family for company, and continues to brood on the problem of how to get across the river--and home. Abel's time on the island brings him a new understanding of the world he's separated from. Faced with the daily adventure of survival in his solitary, somewhat hostile domain, he is moved to reexamine the easy way of life he had always accepted and discovers skills and talents in himself that hold promise of a more meaningful life, if and when he should finally return to Mossville and his dear Amanda again.

Plucky Irene, a dressmaker's daughter, braves a fierce snowstorm to deliver a new gown to the duchess in time for the ball.

Pete's father starts kneading the dough. Next, some oil is generously applied. (It's really water.) And then some tomatoes. (They're really checkers.) When the dough gets tickled, it laughs like crazy.

Can Pearl, a pig, and her new friend, a small talking bone, outwit a band of robbers and a hungry fox?The Amazing Bone is a 1976 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year, a 1977 Caldecott Honor Book, and a 1977 Boston Globe - Horn Book Awards Honor Book for Picture Books.

Amos le souriceau aime tellement la mer qu'un jour, fasciné par les baleines, il tombe de son bateau. Heureusement, Boris la baleine vient à son secours.

Dominic is a talented dog, and when he encounters the notorious Doomsday Gang up to their old tricks, it becomes obvious they have met their match!An ALA Notable Book

From the beloved Caldecott Medalist and creator of Shrek comes his classic wordplay puzzle book in this new paperback Stories to Go! edition. Full color.

Gawain the goose is really devoted to King Basil the bear and so he takes his job as Chief Guard of the Royal Treasury seriously. When rubies, then gold ducats, and finally the world-famous Kalikak diamond vanish from the treasure house, there is no way to account for the disappearances. Only Gawain and the King have keys!Woe and misery must be borne--by Gawain, by King Basil and the entire community, as well as by the real thief--before the goose's good name is restored. Brought to trial, Gawain escapes from his faithless friends into lonely self-exile. Now the thief, burdened by guilt, sees that the right thing must be done and determines, heroically, to do it. (Setting all this straight is no small job for one mouse, even such a mouse as Derek.)William Steig's many admirers will find in The Real Thief a book worthy of standing beside Dominic and Amos and Boris .

The long-awaited sequel to 'Doctor De Soto' (1982), a Newbery Honor Book.It's business as usual at the office of Doctor Bernard De Soto, the world-renowned dentist, when a cablegram arrives begging him to come to Africa and work his wonders on Mudambo, an elephant with an unbearable toothache. The kind-hearted dentist and his wife, Deborah, sail for Africa right away.Before he can help the suffering elephant, Doctor De Soto is kidnapped by a vindictive rhesus monkey. But in spite of everything, the De Sotos come through, and Mudambo's tooth is as good as new when they finally go on their way. William Steig (1907-2003) was an American cartoonist, illustrator and writer of children's books. He was best known for the picture book Shrek!' (1990), which inspired the film series of the same name, as well as others that included 'Sylvester and the Magic Pebble' (1969), 'Abel's Island' (1976), and 'Doctor De Soto' (1982).Age Rating: 4-8 & OlderIllustrated in Full Color

Steig's witty dialectic on the nature of existence.

A playful story of poor, misunderstood Spinky, lying in his hammock with a dreadful case of the sulks.

Steig’s classic word game – now available in colorC D C ? = See the sea?E-R I M ! = Here I am!U F B-D I-S = You have beady eyes.To figure out William Steig’s word puzzles, you need merely read the letters, numbers, and symbols aloud. If at first the messages are unclear, there’s a clever picture accompanying each to give you hints. Originally published in 1984 with black-and-white drawings, this title is given new life in this full-color edition painted by Mr. Steig. Also included for the first time is an answer key at the end.

When Caleb finds himself transformed into a dog and is unable to tell his wife his true identity, he decides to become her companion.Caleb and Kate is a 1977 New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year and Outstanding Book of the Year and a 1978 National Book Award Finalist for Children's Literature.

The perfect picture book for rambunctious kids―monsters of all kinds battle it out every day on Rotten Island. But can all that glorious rottenness last forever? “Without question, the monster book of the year.”― Boston GlobeWhat would happen if every creature on land and sea were free to be as rotten as possible? If every day was a free-for-all; if plants grew barbed wire; if the ocean were poison? That’s life on Rotten Island. For creatures that slither, creep, and crawl (not to mention kick, bite, scratch, and play nasty tricks on each other), Rotten Island is paradise.But then, on a typically rotten day, something truly awful happens. Something that could spoil Rotten Island forever. Out of a bed a gravel on the scorched earth, a mysterious, beautiful flower begins to grow… This is a wonderfully raucous, fantastically colorful, reminder that nothing rotten lasts forever.William Steig was a master of the children’s book. Author of Shrek! ―the basis for the movie series―and many other beloved and award-winning titles, Rotten Island is Steig at his imaginative best.

Before Shrek made it big on the silver screen, there was William Steig’s SHREK!, a book about an ordinary ogre who leaves his swampy childhood home to go out and see the world. Ordinarily, that is, if a foul and hideous being who ends up marrying the most stunningly ugly princess on the surface of the planet is what you consider ordinary. SHREK! can be found in this collection of six modern picture-book classics by Steig, along with stories concerning creatures ordinary and extraordinary—from Irene, a brave and loving little girl who must battle a howling blizzard, to Spinky, a boy who is so completely annoyed by his family that he no longer has any use for the human race. Gathered together for the first time, these entertaining stories will delight fans of Steig, both old and new.

One fresh and fair summer day, as soon as his parents go out, Gorky sets up his laboratory by the kitchen sink to have another try at concocting a magic potion. This time he strikes upon the missing ingredient--half a bottle of his mother's attar of roses--and he knows it's success at last.While he is waiting for the bubbly, glinting liquid to show what it can do, he heads over to Elephant Rock, "his best spot for doing nothing." But on the way he stops to bask in the sun, soon falls asleep--and wakes to find himself floating in the immensely blue sky, clutching his bottle of magic.There follows the most astonishing, bewildering, and bedazzling adventure a young frog could possibly have. Orbiting the globe has its ups and downs, however, and Gorky soon begins to wonder if he'll ever get back to earth. He does manage to outwit the magic; but the potion saves a last surprise until Gorky reaches Elephant Rock, just on day later than he had planned.Gorky Rises is a 1980 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year, Notable Children's Book of the Year, and Outstanding Book of the Year.

Here, in the great tradition of Sylvester and the Magic Pebble and Caleb and Kate, is another tale of magical transformation from William Steig. Its hero, young Solomon, is an ordinary rabbit--well, ordinary in every respect but one. Whenever he scratches his nose and wiggles his toes at exactly the same time, he turns into a rusty nail. To turn back into a rabbit, all he has to do is thing: "I'm no nail, I'm a rabbit!" This unusual talent enables Solomon to play some gratifying practical jokes, but it also leads to serious trouble when he's waylaid by a one-eyed cat who plans to turn him into Hasenpfeffer. Solomon promptly becomes a rusty nail and steadfastly refuses to change back, even after Ambrose, the cat, and his wife, Clorinda, lock him up in a cage in their guest room. Sooner or later, they figure, they'll be dining no bunny stew. How can Solomon possibly find a way out of this dilemma?

An exciting collaborationWizzil, a witch, is bored stiff. So, with some coaxing from Beatrice, her parrot, she turns herself into a common housefly and heads over to Frimp farm to stir up trouble. Little does she know, DeWitt Frimp absolutely hates all breeds of fly, especially Musca domestica, and Wizzil narrowly escapes a life-threatening swatting. Wasting no time at all, she cooks up a nasty plan to teach DeWitt a she turns herself into a glove, which DeWitt finds and proudly wears, but which also deprives him of the ability to aim his flyswatter. Steig's playful storytelling voice is in full gear in his latest tale, and Quentin Blakes hilarious, antic pictures are a perfect match for the text.

Yorick Bede has always considered his younger brother Charles a first-rate pain in the pants, and Charles thinks the same of Yorick. One day Yorick plays with his alchemist father's potions, and he accidentally shrinks himself to the size of a cockroach. Now suddenly Charles is the big brother. Though it's tempting to leave Yorick as a shrunken version of himself to teach him a lesson, Charles and the rest of the Bede family protect Yorick and tinker with more and more potions until they find the right one to bring back him back to his normal size.

Bitterly disappointed when his family falls asleep as he plays his newfound harmonica, a spirited young pig runs away only to undergo harrowing adventures before he, with the aid of his magical sleep-inducing harmonica, can be reunited with his loving family.

This is the story ofwhen I was a boy,almost 100 years ago,when fire engines werepulled by horses,boys did not play with girls,kids went to libraries for books,there was no TV,you could see a movie for a nickel,and everybody wore a hat.

Both simple and profound, Which Would You Rather Be? is a modern classic. This charming, kid-friendly picture book comes from a perfectly matched duo. Favorite books from the wildly creative William Steig include Sylvester and the Magic Pebble and Shrek! Harry Bliss's many beloved picture books include Steve Martin's Number One Is Walking, the Diary of... books, and Louise, The Adventures of a Chicken. Bliss's warm, accessible art and Steig's winning way with words make this book a treasure for any child—a celebration of humor and creativity.

Roland sets out to see the world, armed with his lute and his sweet voice, but a scheming fox almost roasts him before he is rescued by the king.

Leonard penetrates the mysterious Zabajaba Jungle where odd adventures await him, from carnivorous flowers to a petrified monster.

A kindly pig and his hired ass, Ebenezer suffer unlikely adventures when returning from market with gifts for their fat family

A delightful collaborationBorn in the company of an angel wearing a clown's nose, Potch has always woken up happy to be who and where he is. Then, when he meets Polly Pumpernickel at a masquerade ball, he does a double backflip, but it's his heart that really goes for a whirl. Polly goes for a whirl, too, and winds up in a fountain after a dance-gone-wrong with Potch. One catastrophe follows another as Potch tries to win her affection. Just when things look utterly hopeless, Polly realizes that Potch isn't merely another annoying short bald guy, and she comes up with a plan of her own.

Tiffky Doofky, garbage collector for the town of Popville, is proud of his calling, and quite a gay dog into the bargain. One fine spring morning, while he's making his rounds, it comes to him that something special is going to happen. Madame Tarsal, the fortuneteller, confirms his hunch and predicts that he will meet his true love that very day--before the sun goes down! "Nothing you can do can keep it from happening," she quacks, and the excited Tiffky kisses her right on the bill.The day turns out to be far from ordinary, but not in the way Tiffky Doofky, or even Madame Tarsal, had expected. A bad-tempered witch is at work here, though she looks just like a harmless old biddy, with her bicycle and red babushka. Tiffky's adventures under her spell take him so far from Popville and so close to sunset that he begins to despair of ever meeting his beloved. He even decides that Madame Tarsal ought to get a new crystal ball. But just as the sun is touching the horizon, Tiffky has his most perilous encounter, and it brings an ending entirely satisfactory to all.