Why?

This wordless picture book provides an anthropomorphic representation of the futility of war. Frog is enjoying a flower in a tranquil garden, when all of a sudden, an umbrella-wielding mouse appears and attacks frog. The frog community retaliates and in return, the mice fight back. Soon the situation transforms into a full-scale war, the landscape gets scarred, nobody wins, and the “why” behind the bloodshed remains unanswered. On the last page, we see the mouse with the wilted flower and the frog with the broken umbrella sitting miserably in a war-ravaged terrain.

Do read the author’s note on the senselessness of war. This is a powerful book perfect for the times we live in. Being wordless, this is an excellent conversation starter in any classroom on the futility of conflict.