Is there anyone out there who hasn’t read the “Frog and Toad” series, either as a child or to their own children? If so, please remedy this at once. And I’ll give you a brief synopsis so you know what you’re getting into.

Frog and Toad are friends. Frog is the more level-headed and reasonable of the two (of two siblings, he would be the older); Toad is a bit more of a dreamer, and somewhat prone to mishap (the younger, definitely). And throughout this series of books they have adventures together. There is a sweetness to their friendship, but it isn’t too sweet. In fact, it fits my criteria for a good children’s literature:

Not too cute or cloying
A sense of humor that adults can enjoy
Illustrations that suit the text
If there is a moral to the story, it is subtle
That indescribable something that makes the story timeless

I peruse a lot of children’s literature at the library and at the bookstore, and there is – to put it plainly – a lot of crap out there. The worst, to me, are what I call “Product Tie-In Lit.” These are books that are hurried off the presses in order to ride the wave of a trend – most often a TV or cartoon character. Their purpose is to make money.

And they do. A child will see his favorite character on the cover, and he’ll want it. But upon reading, you’ll see that the story is flimsy (if it exists), and the illustrations look like stills from the TV show. These books will disappear when the TV character loses its popularity. There’s nothing sustaining or sustainable about them.

And why pay $4 for that when you can pay the same amount and get a volume of “Frog and Toad”?