Mitton, Tony. Illustrated by Guy Parker-Rees. 2006. All afloat on Noah’s boat. New York: Orchard Books. 

As Noah finishes the ark and prepares for the flood, pairs of animals join him on the ark. After the rain has come and gone, and the land is still covered with water, the animals begin to get bored. When the pairs get grumpy and can’t get along, Noah saves the day with the suggestion of a talent show. The animals all compete in the show, including the caterpillars who share their talent of spinning cocoons. While the frogs do hyper-hops and the toucans play a rhythm on the deck, the caterpillars fret that they cannot compete while enclosed in their cocoons. Noah once again saves the show by having all the animals watch the caterpillar’s last act as all the animals come out, “two by two, on a world that waited, bright and new”. The text in this traditional flood story not only rhymes, but curves up, down and all around, simulating water and emphasizing the crazy feel of the animals that have been stuck together in a small space too long. The bright colors in Parker-Rees’ illustrations along with the extraordinarily expressive faces of the animals make this story stand out and will have readers of all ages laughing out loud and making plans to stage their own talent show.