Unalloyed Awesomeness Department

Here's something to brighten your Friday: A new book by Arnold Lobel has been discovered that predates the "Frog and Toad" stories by about a decade. The LA Times says Frog and Toad aren't friends yet in "The Frogs and Toads All Sang," (HarperCollins, Ages 4-7) but the 10 poems and illustrations (colored by his daughter, Adrienne) already have many of the characteristics of the later stories. I say anything new by Lobel (especially amphibious in character) is cause for rejoicing.