Carol and the Pickle-Toad

Esmé Shapiro’s book, Carol and the Pickle-Toad, is a feast for the eyes! Each page is loaded with quirky visual details that embellish the story and, at times, are delightfully extraneous to the narrative. This eccentric book is both entertaining and meaningful. Carol, the protagonist, starts off wearing a bossy toad on her head as a hat: “Did you know that some people wear toads as hats? Not all, but some do.” Carol does whatever the toad tells her to do, even if she doesn’t agree. When a pigeon randomly steals away her toad, Carol doesn’t know what to do with herself. She finally replaces her missing hat with a pickle fashioned into a make-believe toad. As Carol sports her new pickle-toad hat, she feels a greater sense of freedom, but still, she attributes her decisions to the imaginary voice of the pickle-toad that she hears in her head. But pigeons be pigeons, and this time it steals away her pickle-toad. After outwardly searching for her pickle-toad hat, Carol finds that she has always had her own voice inside… and it’s strong, opinionated, and friendly.

Shapiro successfully creates this off-kilter book which is both intriguing and mystifying. It’s evident that Shapiro must see her readers as sophisticated thinkers since she does not offer explanations for the oddities of a toad hat and its metaphorical role in Carol’s life. The story moves forward whether the reader understands it or not… and I see this as a good thing because it encourages re-reading for meaning-making and comprehension. The story is pleasantly unsettling and unique.

Shapiro’s artwork first drew me into this book. Carol and the Pickle-Toad is physically exquisite from first page to last, and each intricate image inspires slow, thoughtful digestion. To start, the bright and colourful endpages charmingly depict a variety of hats. Within, Shapiro fills each double-page spread with inventive layout and composition. There is no patterning in this book – each page is matchlessly designed. Shapiro creates a cast of imaginative background characters and an odd but relatable protagonist. She uses watercolour, gouache, collage, and coloured pencils to construct her illustrations. In the title-page verso, it notes that Shapiro also used motza ball soup and toad in her artwork which is reminiscent of author Peter H. Reynolds’ use of tea in his artwork for The Dot.

As a self-recognized product of quarantine during the pandemic of 2020, Shapiro’s work has the potential for historical significance for young readers in this time – that is, for those who read the publication details. It’s nice to think about some of the positive outcomes from this turbulent time, even though the story has no connection to it.

Carol and the Pickle-Toad is a book that is suitable for read-aloud, one-on-one shared reading, and silent reading. Even though it is a picture book, it is not a quick read,. Every school library should strive to have a copy and be prepared for high circulation. Shapiro’s whimsical book is sure to delight and to intrigue young minds!