Picture Book #5

Author:  Janet Stevens
Title:  Tops and Bottoms
Illustrator:  Janet Stevens
Readability score:  Kindergarten to Grade 2
Genre:  Fiction
Subgenre:  Fable
Theme:  Working together to accomplish a goal. Avoid laziness.
Primary and Secondary characters:  Hare, Bear, Mrs. Hare, children
Awards:  Caldecott Honor
Date of Publication:  1995
Publishing Company:  Harcourt Brace & Company
ISBN Number:  0-15-292851-0


Tops and Bottoms is a fable about Father Hare and his neighbor, Bear.  Bear has land to grow crops on, but he is too lazy to raise anything.  Hare and his family are hungry; so Hare and Mrs. Hare come up with a plan to use Bear's land to grow food to feed the family.  Hare goes to Bear and offers him a deal.  Hare will raise all the crops and Bear can have the top or bottom half of the crop.  Bear chooses the top half, so Hare and his family grow carrots, radishes, and beets.  Bear gets the top half, which is what he agreed on, while Hare gets the bottoms.  Bear is angry.  When Hare raises the next crop, Bear wants the bottoms.  He thinks Hare is going to raise carrots, beets, and radishes again so he goes back to sleep.  Hare gets to work on the next crop.  When Bear wakes up, he finds that Hare has grown lettuce, broccoli, and celery and he has taken all the tops for himself.  Bear has been tricked again!  He wants tops and bottoms from the next crop, so Hare plants corn.  He takes the ears of corn from the middle and gives Bear the roots and tassels.   Finally, Bear decides he will plant his own crops.  Hare and his family bought land and opened a vegetable stand.  Hare and Bear never worked together ever again!

I would use this book as an introduction to a lesson on fables.  This book has a strong theme, or moral, that young students can easily understand.  It is also written in an interesting way, because the book is read from top to bottom, as the title suggests.  I would read the book aloud to the class.  Then, I would facilitate a conversation about the book.  I would ask the students questions like, "What do you think Bear learned at the end of the story?"  "What other fable was Hare in?"  "Do you think it is good to be lazy?"  Then, I would have a lesson on the characteristics of fables.