The Tortoise or the Hare by Toni and Slade Morrison

Morrison, Toni & Slade Morrison The Tortoise or the Hare, Illustrated by Joe Cepeda. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2010. $16.99.  PICTURE BOOK. This book is a retelling of the classic Tortoise and the Hare story.  However, in this book, the hare is so fast no one wants to be around him and the tortoise is so smart no one wants to be around him.  I loved the set up of this book.  It had style and flare.  I thought it had a fresh and creative way of telling this old story.  I was looking forward to the ending, to see what happened.  Unfortunately, I was left disappointed.  Still, some might be willing to overlook the poor ending because the rest of the book is quite enjoyable.  The book does offer the possibility for a discussion of whether or not winning is most important in competitions.  PreK, EL (K-3), EL, MS – OPTIONAL. Brent Smith, Reading Teacher.