The Rat and the Tiger

even though one is just a tiny little fellow and the other is a big tough guy, rat and tiger are best friends. They have lots of fun playing together, even though tiger is a bit of a bully. When they play cowboys, rat always has to be the bad guy. When they share a snack, rat always gets the smaller piece. But one day, tiger takes the bullying too far, and rat decides that he's not going take it anymore. Rat stands up for himself and refuses to be tiger's friend until tiger learns to play fair and square. With appealing illustrations and a simple text, keiko kasza delivers an important message about friendship in this heartwarming story.

publishers weekly

``i'm a rat, just a tiny little rat,'' says the diminutive narrator of this piquant tale about friendship. Towering above him is his best buddy, tiger, ``a big tough fellow. '' rat explains that the two ``used to have a little problem. '' whenever they played cowboys, rat always had to be the bad guy. And whenever they shared a doughnut, he was left with a small piece while his buddy received the tiger's share. But one day the big bully goes too far. When he kicks over the elaborate block castle rat painstakingly built, the latter declares that tiger is no longer his friend. And the stubborn little fellow makes sure that his companion has truly mended his selfish ways before he declares them pals once again. As in her past books, kasza ( the pigs' picnic ; a mother for choco ) here delivers a valuable lesson cunningly and effectively. With their drolly expressive faces, tiger and rat pass on the importance of sharing, playing fairly and treating others as you'd like to be treated. As a bonus, kasza adds a characteristically clever tangle at story's end. Ages 4-8. (mar. )