''The Ant and the Elephant'' is a children's picture book written and illustrated by

Bill Peet William Bartlett Peet (''né'' Peed; January 29, 1915 – May 11, 2002) was an American children's book illustrator and a story writer and animator for Walt Disney Animation Studios. Peet joined Disney in 1937 and worked first on ''Snow Wh ...

and was adapted into a family musical for the stage. Published by HMH Books for Young Readers in 1972, it is based on the Aesop Fable entitled ''

The Dove and the Ant The Dove and the Ant is a story about the reward of compassionate behaviour. Included among Aesop's Fables, it is numbered 235 in the Perry Index. The fable There has been little variation in the fable since it was first recorded in Greek sources ...

''.

Plot

ant Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...

is stranded on an island; since he can't swim, the ant asks a

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

for help. The turtle selfishly refuses (because he's already had his swim for the day); shortly thereafter, he falls on his back and can't right himself. So he asks a

hornbill Hornbills are birds found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia of the family Bucerotidae. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a horny casque on the upper ...

for help; she selfishly refuses ("This will teach you not to be so clumsy," she says), and then her egg falls out of its nest. It's too heavy for her to carry, so she asks a

giraffe The giraffe is a large Fauna of Africa, African even-toed ungulate, hoofed mammal belonging to the genus ''Giraffa.'' It is the Largest mammals#Even-toed Ungulates (Artiodactyla), tallest living terrestrial animal and the largest ruminant on ...

for help, but the giraffe is too proud to assist her. Then the giraffe's legs get hopelessly ensnarled in some

vines A vine is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or wikt:scandent, scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas, or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselves, for instance, when used in wicker work.Jackson; ...

; he asks a

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'', native to Sub-Saharan Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body (biology), body; a short, rounded head; round ears; and a dark, hairy tuft at the ...

for help, but the lion just laughs and strolls on. Then a boulder rolls onto the lion's tail, trapping him. He asks a

rhino A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...

for help, but when he can't think of any way to return the favor, the rhino strolls on...until he gets his horn embedded in a stump. Then an

elephant Elephants are the largest living land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant ('' Loxodonta africana''), the African forest elephant (''L. cyclotis''), and the Asian elephant ('' Elephas maximus ...

notices and helps each of the animals in turn, starting with the ant - the only one who bothers to thank the elephant. Shortly after the elephant has assisted everyone, he himself falls into a

ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. Ravines may also be called a cleuch, dell, ...

. When he can't get out, the elephant resigns himself to his plight. Then a horde of ants - led by the one he assisted previously - carry him from the ravine. He, in turn, gives them a ride home on his back.

Musical

''The Ant and the Elephant'' was adapted into an on-stage family

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

. The play was adapted by the creators of ''The Musical Adventures of

Flat Stanley ''Flat Stanley'' is an American children's book series written by author Jeff Brown (January 1, 1926 – December 3, 2003). The idea for the book began as a bedtime story for Brown’s sons, which Brown turned into the first Flat Stanley book. Th ...

''.

Reception

;Book A review by Elephanteria Library Books About Elephants includes, "Good illustrations; look like pencil and/or pastel work. Lesson in helping and showing gratitude. Recommended for early readers and younger". ;Musical

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

's MSC Opas said that the play has a catchy score by the

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

winning team of ''

The Drowsy Chaperone ''The Drowsy Chaperone'' is a Canadian musical with music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, and a book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The story concerns a middle-aged, asocial musical theater fan who, feeling "blue", decides to pl ...

''.MSC Opas

References