There was an Old Lady who Swallowed a Fly

By Simms Taback

Everyone knows the poem about the old lady who swallowed a fly, then a spider, then a bird... but never before have we been given such an interesting and humorous view of the situation! Using die-cut holes, we are able to see exactly what is going on inside this crazy old lady's stomach. And Taback's combination of bold painting, crayon, and collage create a very unique perspective of a well-known story. Attentiveness to detail and humorous asides are what make this book a pleasure to read. And since the story itself has been put into books countless times, it's impressive to see how unique Taback was able to make this story - so impressive, in fact, that it won a Caldecott Honor award.

I think the best part of this book is its sense of humor. The humorous illustrations and the clever asides of the animals mean that readers will want to take their time looking through all the pages. And the story ends with a very strong moral: "Never swallow a horse." It's pretty hard to argue with a message like that!