Cowardly Clyde, a comedy for kids, written and illustrated by Bill Peet for youngsters 4-8 years old, is a tale about real bravery...

Bill Peet's recipe for a rollicking tale:

1. Gather together:

• a young, fearless knight, Sir Galavant
• his fearful war-horse, Clyde
• a fear-inspiring "giant owl-eyed ox-footed ogre, nearly as big as a barn."

2. Place them together in a bucolic English country-side

3. Stir in frantic farmers trying to flee

4. Add a pinch of:

• a war-horse's worry that they'll actually find the ogre
• a trail of two-toed tracks to follow
• Sir Galavant's glee, "He must be a whopper! With tracks like these we'll catch up to the beast in no time. Clyde, boy! We're in luck!"

5. Insert Sir Galavant and Clyde into the sleeping ogre's hideout in the dark and gloomy woods

6. Enjoy the delectable concoction Bill Peet cooks up after Sir Galavant shouts, "En garde!" to awaken the monster so they can have a fair fight because, as Sir Galavant whispered to Clyde, "I could slit his gullet in a twinkling, and he'd never know it. But that wouldn't be sporting, would it, Clyde, boy? Not fair at all."


Cowardly Clyde is a delightful, tongue-in-cheek serving of silliness for you and your child. From the gentlemanly, but not too bright, Sir Galavant's sense of fair play, to the finale of the fight in the forest, the fun never ends.

And neither does the learning. As an adult, you realize the easiest way to learn something new is if you're having fun while you're learning. Bill Peet's storytelling uses this approach. All his books contain at least one thought for children and their parents to talk about after, or while, they read the book together.

Cowardly Clyde will help you explore the concept of bravery with your children. There is a difference between courage and bravery in spite of the fact that most people think of them as meaning the same thing. Courage is the ability to face danger willingly because you're not afraid. Bravery is facing danger in spite of being afraid. Therein lies the difference.

Kids like to torment other kids by calling them scaredy-cats or chickens, implying that the other child is afraid to do something--usually something that would get the child physically hurt, or in trouble if caught doing it!

Situations like that really have nothing to do with being afraid. The reluctant child is actually motivated by common sense, not fear, just as Clyde was. Clyde had enough sense to understand that things could get a wee bit sticky if Sir Galavant's wishes were fulfilled--"Bring on the fire-breathing dragons! Bring on the man-eating giants! Bring on the ogres and trolls! I'll clobber the brutes, I will!" Uh-huh. Right.

Unfortunately, many of us don't clearly explain to our kids the difference between common sense, and stupidity. If we did, our kids would have the verbal ammunition to fight back when others tried to tell them they were cowards. Even better, our children would never ever apply the coward label to themselves, as Clyde did, simply because they had more common sense than others.

The tale of Cowardly Clyde will help you put an end to this misconception, which is more than poor Clyde's folks did for him!

Get a copy today and enjoy!

Closing notes

As a picture book, the major portion of each page of Cowardly Clyde is covered with one of Bill Peet's illustrations. The comical artistic style he uses for his picture books looks like a combination of crayons and colored pencils. Kids easily understand them and what they illustrate. His ogre is monsterish (I just invented that word!), not frightening. And take a good look at the last goose in line as the farmers are fleeing.

Cowardly Clyde was first published in 1978, but neither it, nor Bill Peet's gently funny stories, will ever go out of date.

To learn more about Bill Peet, you can go to your favorite merchant, or to your local library's Biography section in the Children's Room, and get a copy of Bill Peet: An Autobiography.

(If you'd like to, please go to my member page and read my reviews of Bill Peet: An Autobiography and Cock-a-doodle Dudley. Thank you.)

Or, you can insert these addresses in your browser's address bar:

Bill Peet: An Autobiography
[http://www.epinions.com/book-review-7661-620B727-3A2AC427-prod1]
Cock-a-doodle Dudley
[http://www.epinions.com/book-review-3538-3158085F-3A577BE0-prod2 ]


Final notes

Bill Peet's Cowardly Clyde is available as:

• a paperback of 38 pages (Dimensions [in inches]: 0.18 x 9.63 x 8.42), published by Houghton Mifflin Co. (Juv) in March 26, 1984 as a Reprint edition, ISBN: 0395361710, reading level: 4-8 years old, list price $7.95 US

Paperbacks are great to order in advance, or grab at the last minute, to take along on a trip. If you're lucky enough to live in the sunny South, they're great at the beach, too! If you have an only child, or your children are very careful with books, paperbacks are the way to go...

• a hardback of 48 pages (Dimensions [in inches]: 0.44 x 9.95 x 8.62), published by Econo-Clad Books in October 1999, ISBN: 0808535609, reading level: 4-8 years old, list price $16.00 US

A hardcover book, if its price is within your budget, is an excellent choice for a large family that will pass a book from child to child, or for an only child who treasures books and reads them over, and over, and over again

From the copyright page: "Summary: For a war-horse, Clyde is an abysmal coward, but he finally decides that even if he isn't brave he can at least act brave."

By the way, when your children outgrow this book, if you're not planning to save it for the grandkids, you can recycle it at your local library. Did you know that most libraries accept used books in good condition to:

• add a new book title to their shelves
• replace their worn-out copy of that title, or
• sell to raise money,
and the IRS accepts your book gifts to libraries as charitable donations?

How about that? I know donated books make a big difference at my small library.

Recommended: Yes