Hello friends, and Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Our book today is Five Little Leprechauns, written by Jeffrey Burton and illustrated by Tommy Doyle, a festive twist on a classic tale.

A leprechaun-themed retelling of the “Five Little Monkeys” nursery rhyme, this short tale follows five flame-haired and emerald-attired young leprechauns as they get into mischief related to their folklore: playing in fields of clover, hiding in rainbows, and hiding their pots of gold.

Easily skipped. Burton tries to update the original rhyme with leprechaun-related activities, but since the “called the doctor” line remains unchanged throughout, this renders each altered rhyme awkward and clunky, especially when read aloud. The illustrations of the leprechauns at play are cute, but the odd inclusion of bubbles on most of the spreads to show the leprechauns’ mother and doctor interrupt their visual charm unnecessarily. There’s also a part in which the creators seem to have forgotten that Ireland and Scotland are two different countries with entirely separate folklore (a Loch Ness and “Nessie” reference is made, despite this clearly being a Irish/St. Patrick’s-themed book). Length is fine for a quick storytime, and JJ enjoyed the artwork some, but content-wise, this one’s a bit of a mess. Not for us.

(Note: A copy of this book was provided to The Baby Bookworm by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)