Wiesner, David. 2001. The Three Pigs. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN: 978-0618007011
Plot Summary:
David Wiesner's The Three Pigs tells the story of the three little pigs. As in other versions of the story, there are three pigs who build houses and a wolf that comes to blow the houses down. However, the storyline veers from what is familiar. The pigs are blown out of the pages! Suddenly, the pigs take a paper airplane ride and meet the cat and fiddle and a dragon guarding a golden rose. Joined by the cat and the dragon, the pigs return to the brick house. The wolf comes, but he does not blow the house down. Instead, the dragon scares the wolf, who runs away. The book ends with the pigs, the cat, the dragon, and the golden rose "liv[ing] happily ever after."
Critical Analysis:
Wiesner skillfully combines the the story of The Three Pigs, The Cat and the Fiddle, and fairy tale with a dragon and a golden rose to create a new story and adventure for the pigs. It is a funny and very different look at the traditional story. This version of the story requires readers to suspend their previous experiences with the story and join the pigs in a fantastical ride.
The Three Pigs begins predictably, but after the first few pages, the traditional story is no more. Through the use of text or thought bubble, Wiesner fractures the fairy tale. Children who are used to the classic story will wrinkle their foreheads in confusion (as my five year old daughter did!) as the pigs fly and sneak off the pages and use their new-found freedom to literally fly into other stories. My son and daughter enjoyed the pigs' adventure, but my daughter, who knows the traditional story and the story of The Cat and the Fiddle, needed me to stop after the pigs met the cat and explain what was happening.
The varied type of illustrations used throughout the tale also reinforce the fracturing of the story. At the beginning, the illustrations are line drawings typical to children's picture books, but as the story progresses and the fracturing begins, the illustrations change. The pigs take on a more realistic quality while the wolf remains a typical line drawing. As the pigs enter into the various other tales in the story, the illustrations change again. When they meet The Cat and the Fiddle, the illustrations become cartoon like, but when they meet the dragon protecting the golden rose, the drawings become black and white pencil sketches until the pigs invite the dragon to join them. Then, the dragon takes on a more realistic texture, just like the pigs, as they leave the dragon's fairy tale. Finally, the book returns to the traditional drawings of the book's beginning at the book's end as the dragon, cat, and pigs sit around eating bowls of soup.
The panel style of story telling in the book is reminiscent of comic books, which goes along with the chat or thought bubbles the characters use to communicate with one another.
Review Excerpts:
"In Tuesday (Clarion, 1991), Wiesner demonstrated that pigs could fly. Here, he shows what happens when they take control of their story. In an L. Leslie Brooke sort of style (the illustrations are created through a combination of watercolor, gouache, colored inks, and pencils), the wolf comes a-knocking on the straw house. When he puffs, the pig gets blown "right out of the story." (The double spread contains four panels on a white background; the first two follow the familiar story line, but the pig falls out of the third frame, so in the fourth, the wolf looks quite perplexed.) So it goes until the pigs bump the story panels aside, fold one with the wolf on it into a paper airplane, and take to the air. Children will delight in the changing perspectives, the effect of the wolf's folded-paper body, and the whole notion of the interrupted narrative. Wiesner's luxurious use of white space with the textured pigs zooming in and out of view is fresh and funny. They wander through other stories-their bodies changing to take on the new style of illustration as they enter the pages-emerging with a dragon and the cat with a fiddle. The cat draws their attention to a panel with a brick house, and they all sit down to soup, while one of the pigs reconstructs the text. Witty dialogue and physical comedy abound in this inspired retelling of a familiar favorite." School Library Journal, Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA
"Even the book's younger readers will understand the distinctive visual code. As the pigs enter the confines of a storybook page, they conform to that book's illustrative style, appearing as nursery-rhyme friezes or comic-book line drawings. When the pigs emerge from the storybook pages into the meta-landscape, they appear photographically clear and crisp, with shadows and three dimensions. Wiesner's (Tuesday) brilliant use of white space and perspective (as the pigs fly to the upper right-hand corner of a spread on their makeshift plane, or as one pig's snout dominates a full page) evokes a feeling that the characters can navigate endless possibilities--and that the range of story itself is limitless." Publishers Weekly
Awards:
2002 Caldecott Medal
2002 ALA Notable Children's Book
Connections:
Fractured fairy tales are fun for readers. Children who find this version of The Three Pigs enjoyable would also enjoy reading The True Story of the Three Pigs and learning the wolf's side of the story.
Teachers in Texas might use the lesson "Cowboys and Castles: Interacting with Fractured Texas Tales" found on readwritethink.org. This lesson uses children's knowledge of traditional fairy tales to introduce fractured fairy tales and has students read fractured fairy tales with a Texas connection such as Bubba the Cowboy Prince.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Beautiful Blackbird
Bryan, Ashley. 2003. Beautiful Blackbird. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 978-0689847318
Plot Summary:
Ashley Bryan's Beautiful Blackbird is based on a folktale with origins in the Ila people of Zambia (Bryan 2003). In this story, the birds of Africa are many bright colors, but they are all one single color. There is no variation in their feathers. Ringdove, a grey bird, calls the birds to meet by the water and while the birds look at their reflections in the water, Ringdove asks the birds what bird is the most beautiful of them all, to which, the other birds reply, "Blackbird!" The birds begin to dance and sing and during the song, Ringdove takes Blackbird aside and asks Blackbird to color him black, to which Blackbird agrees, but only after telling Ringdove that "Color on the outside is not what's on the inside." By the end of the book, all the birds ask Blackbird to paint them with black paint.
Critical Analysis:
Ashley Bryan invokes the people of Africa through the use of rhythm, chants, and tribal dancing throughout the entirety of the story. He uses the background lore of Zambia to tell a story with a message that is important for all children to hear and understand: Beauty is on the inside and be proud of who and what you are. No matter what ethnicity children are, this lesson is paramount for children to learn and embrace, especially in our society that puts such value on outward appearance. Even though the birds do change their appearance by adding color to their feathers, they are still what they once were. Children need to understand that you can change your appearance, you can alter the outside, but you will always be who you are on the inside and nothing can change that, so embrace it and be proud of who you (or what) you are.
The illustrations in the book are very different from other illustrations I have seen in children's literature. The pictures are not drawings. Instead, they are paper cut outs put together to form intricate colleges that work together to create incredibly vivid landscapes. The double layout where the birds meet at the water use paper strips to create the water and a double amount of birds to create the birds' reflections. Even the type of illustration used reinforces the story's moral because the illustrations are so very different from those in other works of children literature.
Review Excerpts:
"Bryan's collages make up for it with their exhibition of colorful splendor and composition. Scenes of the rainbow of wings are outdone only by a lakeside view of their colors intricately "mirrored in the waters." And Bryan's lilting and magical language is infectious." Publishers Weekly
"The story line is simple and the rhythmic chants of the flock frequently interspersed throughout the text add drama and a rapper's cadence. The cut-paper silhouettes are colorful but static, effectuating a stylized formality. The endpapers include an image of the scissors used to create the collages and reinforce the physical process behind the art. This unusual and little-known pourquoi tale may supplement larger collections..." Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, School Library Journal
Awards:
2004 Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration
2004 Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts, NCTE Children's Literature Assembly
Connections:
Beautiful Blackbird would benefit from being heard by being read aloud so that children get a sense of the rhythm of the words. Ashley Bryan has the book on audio so that a teacher or children's librarian could play the book for the children while showing them the book.
Cutting shapes out of paper and putting them together to make a design is fairly easy for children. Children could use this technique to illustration their own stories. Something that a teacher might do would be to have children think about the folktales of their family (tribe) and use cut outs from construction paper to make their own collages to tell their story. (I have done this activity before with high school juniors after reading Native American folktales. It is an activity that my teenage students really enjoy completing. I expect elementary school students would enjoy it just as much.)
Plot Summary:
Ashley Bryan's Beautiful Blackbird is based on a folktale with origins in the Ila people of Zambia (Bryan 2003). In this story, the birds of Africa are many bright colors, but they are all one single color. There is no variation in their feathers. Ringdove, a grey bird, calls the birds to meet by the water and while the birds look at their reflections in the water, Ringdove asks the birds what bird is the most beautiful of them all, to which, the other birds reply, "Blackbird!" The birds begin to dance and sing and during the song, Ringdove takes Blackbird aside and asks Blackbird to color him black, to which Blackbird agrees, but only after telling Ringdove that "Color on the outside is not what's on the inside." By the end of the book, all the birds ask Blackbird to paint them with black paint.
Critical Analysis:
Ashley Bryan invokes the people of Africa through the use of rhythm, chants, and tribal dancing throughout the entirety of the story. He uses the background lore of Zambia to tell a story with a message that is important for all children to hear and understand: Beauty is on the inside and be proud of who and what you are. No matter what ethnicity children are, this lesson is paramount for children to learn and embrace, especially in our society that puts such value on outward appearance. Even though the birds do change their appearance by adding color to their feathers, they are still what they once were. Children need to understand that you can change your appearance, you can alter the outside, but you will always be who you are on the inside and nothing can change that, so embrace it and be proud of who you (or what) you are.
The illustrations in the book are very different from other illustrations I have seen in children's literature. The pictures are not drawings. Instead, they are paper cut outs put together to form intricate colleges that work together to create incredibly vivid landscapes. The double layout where the birds meet at the water use paper strips to create the water and a double amount of birds to create the birds' reflections. Even the type of illustration used reinforces the story's moral because the illustrations are so very different from those in other works of children literature.
Review Excerpts:
"Bryan's collages make up for it with their exhibition of colorful splendor and composition. Scenes of the rainbow of wings are outdone only by a lakeside view of their colors intricately "mirrored in the waters." And Bryan's lilting and magical language is infectious." Publishers Weekly
"The story line is simple and the rhythmic chants of the flock frequently interspersed throughout the text add drama and a rapper's cadence. The cut-paper silhouettes are colorful but static, effectuating a stylized formality. The endpapers include an image of the scissors used to create the collages and reinforce the physical process behind the art. This unusual and little-known pourquoi tale may supplement larger collections..." Carol Ann Wilson, Westfield Memorial Library, School Library Journal
Awards:
2004 Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration
2004 Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts, NCTE Children's Literature Assembly
Connections:
Beautiful Blackbird would benefit from being heard by being read aloud so that children get a sense of the rhythm of the words. Ashley Bryan has the book on audio so that a teacher or children's librarian could play the book for the children while showing them the book.
Cutting shapes out of paper and putting them together to make a design is fairly easy for children. Children could use this technique to illustration their own stories. Something that a teacher might do would be to have children think about the folktales of their family (tribe) and use cut outs from construction paper to make their own collages to tell their story. (I have done this activity before with high school juniors after reading Native American folktales. It is an activity that my teenage students really enjoy completing. I expect elementary school students would enjoy it just as much.)
The Lion and the Mouse
Pinkney, Jerry. 2009. The Lion & the Mouse. New York: Little, Brown and Co. Books for Young Readers. ISBN-978-0316013567
Plot Summary:
Winner of the 2010 Caldecott Medal, The Lion and the Mouse is a mostly wordless retelling of Aesop's fable by the same name. In this fable, a mouse comes upon a lion and disturbs him. The lion catches the mouse and instead of eating the mouse, the lion makes the decision to let the mouse go, and the mouse scurries home. In the meantime, trappers set a rope net trap that the lion accidentally becomes caught in as the lion roams about the desert. The mouse overhears the lion's roars of frustration and fear and finds the lion tangled in the trapper's trap. Under the lion's watchful eye, the mouse climbs the trap and gnaws at the rope, eventually weakening the rope enough that the trap breaks and the mouse sets the lion free. The lion and the mouse exchange a look, and the book ends with the moues taking a piece of the rope trap back to her nest.
Critical Analysis:
Aesop's The Lion and the Mouse fable teaches a story that values the weak. The mouse is obviously inferior to the lion, but the mouse triumphs over the lion by choosing to save the lion's life because the lion showed mercy to the mouse.
Pinkney's retelling of Aesop's fable enables the reader to look at this classic moral story in a different way because of the lack of words. The only words used in the story are onomatopoeia from the animals and the sound of the jeep in the desert. Readers are required to use inference skills in order to make assumptions as to the motivations of the lion and the mouse. Through our studies of science, we know that lions are predators at the top of the food chain and mice are an appetizer for the king of the jungle. While children may not know traditional science, children do know from cartoons and other stories that lions can be vicious and brutal. The logical assumption to make, for anyone, is that the lion will kill the mouse. Pinkney's story challenges that assumption because readers must use the pictures and what they perceive from those pictures to tell the story.
Throughout the book, the illustration are beautiful and extremely detailed line drawings and what appear to be watercolors. Here the lack of text in the fable allow the reader to see the lion more kindly because of the illustrations. In other retellings of this fable, the lion is arrogant, but the illustrations in this retelling do not support that characteristic. Instead, the drawings and paintings show the lion's majesty and ferocity. Before the lion is caught in the trapper's net, the lion stands in the desert, surrounded by other animals who watch him warily, and the lion's majesty is emphasized through the watercolor painting. The double layout where the lion holds the mouse in his paws is breathtakingly beautiful, and the reader cannot help but look at the details of the lion's face as he stares at the prey in his hands. There is deadly beauty in the sharpness of the lion's teeth, but there is also a sense of compassion in the lion's eyes as he looks at the mouse that cowers in his paws. From this illustration, the reader is led to believe the lion is not the deadly beast he is, and the illustration of the lion on the next page reinforces that assumption. The lion releases the mouse, and the detailed drawing of the lion's face shows the lion's curiosity with a hint of a grin in the lion's eyes and on his mouth. There is no arrogance or egotism in the lion's expression anywhere in Pinkney's illustrations.
Review Excerpts:
"This story starts on the cover with the glorious, golden countenance of a lion. No text is necessary to communicate the title: the direction of the beast's gaze and the conflicted expression on his tightly cropped face compel readers to turn the book over, where a mouse, almost filling the vertical space, glances back. The endpapers and artist's note place these creatures among the animal families of the African Serengeti. Each spread contributes something new in this nearly wordless narrative, including the title opening, on which the watchful rodent pauses, resting in one of the large footprints that marches across the gutter. In some scenes, Pinkney's luminous art, rendered in watercolor and colored pencil, suggests a natural harmony, as when the cool blues of the sky are mirrored in the rocks and acacia tree. In other compositions, a cream-colored background focuses attention on the exquisitely detailed and nuanced forms of the two main characters..." Wendy Lukehart, School Library Journal, Washington DC Public Library END
"Here, Pinkney is audacious, courageous, or simply imaginative enough to retell the classic Aesop fable without text. Very few natural sound effects like the hoot of an owl, the scratching of the mouse's teeth as it chews the ropes and the "RRRRRROAARRRR" of the captured lion are all that are necessary. His animated renderings of the African animals along with the two hunters draw us immediately into the familiar story...The illustrations range from double-page spreads to framed or unframed images on single pages. They vary in size but not intensity. The close-up of the lion in the trap is almost a psychological study. As a master of the media, Pinkney handles pencil and transparent watercolors with added colored pencils to create naturalistic characters while avoiding the strictures of photorealism. This is a stunning tour de force." Children's Literature Review
Awards:
2010 Caldecott Medal winner
2010 Horn Book Awards Honor Book Boston Globe
2010 Best Illustrated Books The New York Times
2010 Book of the Year Winner, New Picture Book The Lion and the Mouse, Indies Choice
Connections:
The Lion and the Mouse lends itself to several activities for young children.
In a classroom setting, a teacher could utilize a K-W-L chart to help young readers hone their knowledge of lions and mice, but it would also have them begin to make inferences about the story just based on what they see in the illustration on the book's cover (which is gorgeous).
Another activity children could complete with this fable is a retelling of the moral by using other animal pairs that are opposites like the lion and the mouse. Once children choose an animal pair, they could mimic Pinkney's wordless style and retell the fable through pictures of their own using their chosen animal pairs.
After reading and discussing The Lion and the Mouse, children might want to explore some of Aesop's other fables. For young children, The Tortoise and the Hare or The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse are other fables by Aesop they could easily identify with and would enjoy.
Plot Summary:
Winner of the 2010 Caldecott Medal, The Lion and the Mouse is a mostly wordless retelling of Aesop's fable by the same name. In this fable, a mouse comes upon a lion and disturbs him. The lion catches the mouse and instead of eating the mouse, the lion makes the decision to let the mouse go, and the mouse scurries home. In the meantime, trappers set a rope net trap that the lion accidentally becomes caught in as the lion roams about the desert. The mouse overhears the lion's roars of frustration and fear and finds the lion tangled in the trapper's trap. Under the lion's watchful eye, the mouse climbs the trap and gnaws at the rope, eventually weakening the rope enough that the trap breaks and the mouse sets the lion free. The lion and the mouse exchange a look, and the book ends with the moues taking a piece of the rope trap back to her nest.
Critical Analysis:
Aesop's The Lion and the Mouse fable teaches a story that values the weak. The mouse is obviously inferior to the lion, but the mouse triumphs over the lion by choosing to save the lion's life because the lion showed mercy to the mouse.
Pinkney's retelling of Aesop's fable enables the reader to look at this classic moral story in a different way because of the lack of words. The only words used in the story are onomatopoeia from the animals and the sound of the jeep in the desert. Readers are required to use inference skills in order to make assumptions as to the motivations of the lion and the mouse. Through our studies of science, we know that lions are predators at the top of the food chain and mice are an appetizer for the king of the jungle. While children may not know traditional science, children do know from cartoons and other stories that lions can be vicious and brutal. The logical assumption to make, for anyone, is that the lion will kill the mouse. Pinkney's story challenges that assumption because readers must use the pictures and what they perceive from those pictures to tell the story.
Throughout the book, the illustration are beautiful and extremely detailed line drawings and what appear to be watercolors. Here the lack of text in the fable allow the reader to see the lion more kindly because of the illustrations. In other retellings of this fable, the lion is arrogant, but the illustrations in this retelling do not support that characteristic. Instead, the drawings and paintings show the lion's majesty and ferocity. Before the lion is caught in the trapper's net, the lion stands in the desert, surrounded by other animals who watch him warily, and the lion's majesty is emphasized through the watercolor painting. The double layout where the lion holds the mouse in his paws is breathtakingly beautiful, and the reader cannot help but look at the details of the lion's face as he stares at the prey in his hands. There is deadly beauty in the sharpness of the lion's teeth, but there is also a sense of compassion in the lion's eyes as he looks at the mouse that cowers in his paws. From this illustration, the reader is led to believe the lion is not the deadly beast he is, and the illustration of the lion on the next page reinforces that assumption. The lion releases the mouse, and the detailed drawing of the lion's face shows the lion's curiosity with a hint of a grin in the lion's eyes and on his mouth. There is no arrogance or egotism in the lion's expression anywhere in Pinkney's illustrations.
Review Excerpts:
"This story starts on the cover with the glorious, golden countenance of a lion. No text is necessary to communicate the title: the direction of the beast's gaze and the conflicted expression on his tightly cropped face compel readers to turn the book over, where a mouse, almost filling the vertical space, glances back. The endpapers and artist's note place these creatures among the animal families of the African Serengeti. Each spread contributes something new in this nearly wordless narrative, including the title opening, on which the watchful rodent pauses, resting in one of the large footprints that marches across the gutter. In some scenes, Pinkney's luminous art, rendered in watercolor and colored pencil, suggests a natural harmony, as when the cool blues of the sky are mirrored in the rocks and acacia tree. In other compositions, a cream-colored background focuses attention on the exquisitely detailed and nuanced forms of the two main characters..." Wendy Lukehart, School Library Journal, Washington DC Public Library END
"Here, Pinkney is audacious, courageous, or simply imaginative enough to retell the classic Aesop fable without text. Very few natural sound effects like the hoot of an owl, the scratching of the mouse's teeth as it chews the ropes and the "RRRRRROAARRRR" of the captured lion are all that are necessary. His animated renderings of the African animals along with the two hunters draw us immediately into the familiar story...The illustrations range from double-page spreads to framed or unframed images on single pages. They vary in size but not intensity. The close-up of the lion in the trap is almost a psychological study. As a master of the media, Pinkney handles pencil and transparent watercolors with added colored pencils to create naturalistic characters while avoiding the strictures of photorealism. This is a stunning tour de force." Children's Literature Review
Awards:
2010 Caldecott Medal winner
2010 Horn Book Awards Honor Book Boston Globe
2010 Best Illustrated Books The New York Times
2010 Book of the Year Winner, New Picture Book The Lion and the Mouse, Indies Choice
Connections:
The Lion and the Mouse lends itself to several activities for young children.
In a classroom setting, a teacher could utilize a K-W-L chart to help young readers hone their knowledge of lions and mice, but it would also have them begin to make inferences about the story just based on what they see in the illustration on the book's cover (which is gorgeous).
Another activity children could complete with this fable is a retelling of the moral by using other animal pairs that are opposites like the lion and the mouse. Once children choose an animal pair, they could mimic Pinkney's wordless style and retell the fable through pictures of their own using their chosen animal pairs.
After reading and discussing The Lion and the Mouse, children might want to explore some of Aesop's other fables. For young children, The Tortoise and the Hare or The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse are other fables by Aesop they could easily identify with and would enjoy.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Are you my Mother?
Eastman, P.D. 1960. Are you my Mother? New York, NY: Random House. ISBN-978-0394800189
Plot Summary:
Are you my Mother? is a classic children's story about a baby bird who hatches when his mother is away hunting for a worm. The baby bird falls out of his nest, and since his mother is not there, the little bird asks everyone (and everything!) he encounters if they are his mother. From a cow to a steamboat to an airplane to a "snort" (a steam shovel), his question never changes: Are you my mother? In the end, the steam shovel answers the baby bird's question by placing him back in his nest where his mother returns with a worm she found during her hunt.
Critical Analysis:
The story is a funny look at what can be a serious situation. While the actions of the baby bird and the various things he asks if they are his mother are amusing for the reader, the underlying question remains if the baby bird and mother will be reunited. The reunion of the baby bird and mother drives the plot. Readers become invested in the story of the baby bird. They want to see the baby bird reunited with his mother, and they enjoy the absurdity of his asking everything, "Are you my mother?" In fact, his question is probably one of its most amusing qualities for young readers. Little children know the cow, the hen, or the kitten cannot be the baby bird's mother, and they find it hilarious that the little bird would ask such different animals (and objects) if they could possibly be his mother when it's so obvious they can't be. As I read the book to my two year old, he would says, "NO!" and laugh at the baby bird for asking so many different animals and objects if they were his mother. While the baby bird does not know the difference between what he is as a bird and what the others are, everyone who reads the book immediately knows the differences, which again, adds to the humor of the story. Also, older readers find the little bird's question equally funny, but older readers might more easily pick up on the emotions, particularly the tension, the plot produces as the baby bird tries to find his mother.
The illustrations are realistic and vivid line drawings that captivate the reader, especially the faces of each character. The details of each character's face show the various feelings each character experiences by the little bird asking them if they are his mother. The cow has a maternal and caring look on her face while the kitten looks confused. Even the inanimate characters have faces that blend into their construction. The eyes of the car are its headlights while the front windows of the airplane are its eyes and the opening below the nose of the plane is its mouth. There is artistry in the way Eastman blends the facial features of the inanimate characters while holding true to the object's organic form.
Review Excerpt:
"...Are You My Mother? opens up a question that many young children worry about. As the little bird goes from kitten to hen to a car to a boat, the young readers cheer him on...the book invites many opportunities for conversation as the children explain differences between the various candidates for motherhood and baby bird, or as they share experiences about times when they may have missed or lost their mother, only to be lovingly reunited." --Mary Hynes-Berry Children's Literature Review
(Finding a review over ARE YOU MY MOTHER? was a challenge. This is the only review I could find that I thought qualified for the assignment.)
Connections:
The subject matter of the book is something that all children and adults can identify with; after all, who hasn't had that moment of panic, as a child or as a parent, of turning around in a store, in a park, or any crowded place and found the loved one you were with is out of sight? For young children, this would make a good discussion topic.
Children also enjoy the repetition in the writing. Other books that are part of the Dr. Seuss collection such as Hop on Pop or Eastman's Go Dog Go would appeal to young readers as well.
Another discussion could be had with readers about the way baby bird does not realize the differences between himself as a bird and all the animals and things he thinks could be his mother. This is a discussion that would need to be handled sensitively.
Plot Summary:
Are you my Mother? is a classic children's story about a baby bird who hatches when his mother is away hunting for a worm. The baby bird falls out of his nest, and since his mother is not there, the little bird asks everyone (and everything!) he encounters if they are his mother. From a cow to a steamboat to an airplane to a "snort" (a steam shovel), his question never changes: Are you my mother? In the end, the steam shovel answers the baby bird's question by placing him back in his nest where his mother returns with a worm she found during her hunt.
Critical Analysis:
The story is a funny look at what can be a serious situation. While the actions of the baby bird and the various things he asks if they are his mother are amusing for the reader, the underlying question remains if the baby bird and mother will be reunited. The reunion of the baby bird and mother drives the plot. Readers become invested in the story of the baby bird. They want to see the baby bird reunited with his mother, and they enjoy the absurdity of his asking everything, "Are you my mother?" In fact, his question is probably one of its most amusing qualities for young readers. Little children know the cow, the hen, or the kitten cannot be the baby bird's mother, and they find it hilarious that the little bird would ask such different animals (and objects) if they could possibly be his mother when it's so obvious they can't be. As I read the book to my two year old, he would says, "NO!" and laugh at the baby bird for asking so many different animals and objects if they were his mother. While the baby bird does not know the difference between what he is as a bird and what the others are, everyone who reads the book immediately knows the differences, which again, adds to the humor of the story. Also, older readers find the little bird's question equally funny, but older readers might more easily pick up on the emotions, particularly the tension, the plot produces as the baby bird tries to find his mother.
The illustrations are realistic and vivid line drawings that captivate the reader, especially the faces of each character. The details of each character's face show the various feelings each character experiences by the little bird asking them if they are his mother. The cow has a maternal and caring look on her face while the kitten looks confused. Even the inanimate characters have faces that blend into their construction. The eyes of the car are its headlights while the front windows of the airplane are its eyes and the opening below the nose of the plane is its mouth. There is artistry in the way Eastman blends the facial features of the inanimate characters while holding true to the object's organic form.
Review Excerpt:
"...Are You My Mother? opens up a question that many young children worry about. As the little bird goes from kitten to hen to a car to a boat, the young readers cheer him on...the book invites many opportunities for conversation as the children explain differences between the various candidates for motherhood and baby bird, or as they share experiences about times when they may have missed or lost their mother, only to be lovingly reunited." --Mary Hynes-Berry Children's Literature Review
(Finding a review over ARE YOU MY MOTHER? was a challenge. This is the only review I could find that I thought qualified for the assignment.)
Connections:
The subject matter of the book is something that all children and adults can identify with; after all, who hasn't had that moment of panic, as a child or as a parent, of turning around in a store, in a park, or any crowded place and found the loved one you were with is out of sight? For young children, this would make a good discussion topic.
Children also enjoy the repetition in the writing. Other books that are part of the Dr. Seuss collection such as Hop on Pop or Eastman's Go Dog Go would appeal to young readers as well.
Another discussion could be had with readers about the way baby bird does not realize the differences between himself as a bird and all the animals and things he thinks could be his mother. This is a discussion that would need to be handled sensitively.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Willems, Mo. 2003. Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. New York, NY: Hyperion Press. ISBN-13: 978-0786819881
Plot Summary:
A determined pigeon is the main character of Mo Willems' book Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. The story begins with a simple instruction from the bus driver as he takes a break: Watch things for a little bit and don't let the pigeon drive the bus. From the moment the driver goes off, the pigeon says everything he can to convince us that he can drive the bus. He asks politely, he begs, and at one point, he hilariously explodes. The bus driver's return settles the matter for the pigeon: he will not drive the bus, but the pigeon doesn't give us. The book closes with the pigeon wishing to drive a nearby tractor.
Critical Analysis:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is funny and irreverent. Willems effectively evokes the mentality and sensibility of a toddler (and teenager, for that matter) that wants a toy and wants it NOW. Just like any pre-schooler, the pigeon tries to charm us. He starts off nicely and asks with a "please, I'll be careful," tells the reader a story about his cousin Herb, goes through a series of bribes, and throws a temper tantrum worthy of any toddler that is emphasized by the illustrations.
As the illustrator, Willems uses crayon like drawings of the pigeon that look like something a young child might draw. The drawings emphasize the childlike attitude of the pigeon. The details of pigeon's facial expressions allow the reader to see the attitude of the pigeon as he attempts to coerce permission to drive the bus. The double layout where the pigeon snaps and has a temper tantrum worthy of any child (or teenager) is brilliant in its use of color, detail of the pigeon, and highlighting of the words. Up until these pages, the colors of the pages and illustrations have been very light blues, greys, and soft yellows with black, crayon like, outlining. The temper tantrum is characterized by a tangerine orange that stands out in contrast to the softer colors of the pages before and after it. The oversized lettering is in black with yellow highlighting behind it so that the reader knows the pigeon is yelling at us. Then, there is the pigeon himself. The pigeon is still a slate blue color, but his eyes are oversized with hints of red, and of course, with feathers flying. My two year old loved this layout more than anything else in the book, and as my five year old put it, "Mommy, he looks CRAZY!"
The illustrations make the reader smile and laugh throughout the simple plot of the book right up to the end where the readers see the pigeon dreaming of driving a big red tractor. The readers can imagine what the pigeon's next adventure will be from the illustrations throughout the book by replacing the bus with images of the red tractor.
Review Excerpts:
"A brilliantly simple book that is absolutely true to life, as anyone who interacts with an obdurate three-year-old can attest...Pigeon is an unflinching and hilarious look at a child's potential for mischief. In a plain palette, with childishly elemental line drawings, Willems has captured the essence of unreasonableness in the very young. The genius of this book is that the very young will actually recognize themselves in it." Dona Ratterree, New York City Public Schools --From School Library Journal
"In his winning debut, Willems finds the preschooler in a pigeon: a cajoling, tantrum-throwing, irresistible bird. Willems is a professional animator, and each page has the feel of a perfectly frozen frame of cartoon footage--action, remarkable expression, and wild humor captured with just a few lines. Preschoolers will howl over the pigeon's dramatics, even as they recognize that he wheedles, blows up, and yearns to be powerful just like they do." Gillian Engberg Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --From Booklist
Award:
2004 Caldecott Honorable Mention
Connections:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is the beginning of a series of books that follow the pigeon. This book should be read in series with the other pigeon books to allow children a full view of the pigeon's adventures. Each of the books have their own draw for young children, and most children will find something to identify with as the pigeon tries to stay up late, finds a hot dog, and wants a puppy.
Plot Summary:
A determined pigeon is the main character of Mo Willems' book Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. The story begins with a simple instruction from the bus driver as he takes a break: Watch things for a little bit and don't let the pigeon drive the bus. From the moment the driver goes off, the pigeon says everything he can to convince us that he can drive the bus. He asks politely, he begs, and at one point, he hilariously explodes. The bus driver's return settles the matter for the pigeon: he will not drive the bus, but the pigeon doesn't give us. The book closes with the pigeon wishing to drive a nearby tractor.
Critical Analysis:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is funny and irreverent. Willems effectively evokes the mentality and sensibility of a toddler (and teenager, for that matter) that wants a toy and wants it NOW. Just like any pre-schooler, the pigeon tries to charm us. He starts off nicely and asks with a "please, I'll be careful," tells the reader a story about his cousin Herb, goes through a series of bribes, and throws a temper tantrum worthy of any toddler that is emphasized by the illustrations.
As the illustrator, Willems uses crayon like drawings of the pigeon that look like something a young child might draw. The drawings emphasize the childlike attitude of the pigeon. The details of pigeon's facial expressions allow the reader to see the attitude of the pigeon as he attempts to coerce permission to drive the bus. The double layout where the pigeon snaps and has a temper tantrum worthy of any child (or teenager) is brilliant in its use of color, detail of the pigeon, and highlighting of the words. Up until these pages, the colors of the pages and illustrations have been very light blues, greys, and soft yellows with black, crayon like, outlining. The temper tantrum is characterized by a tangerine orange that stands out in contrast to the softer colors of the pages before and after it. The oversized lettering is in black with yellow highlighting behind it so that the reader knows the pigeon is yelling at us. Then, there is the pigeon himself. The pigeon is still a slate blue color, but his eyes are oversized with hints of red, and of course, with feathers flying. My two year old loved this layout more than anything else in the book, and as my five year old put it, "Mommy, he looks CRAZY!"
The illustrations make the reader smile and laugh throughout the simple plot of the book right up to the end where the readers see the pigeon dreaming of driving a big red tractor. The readers can imagine what the pigeon's next adventure will be from the illustrations throughout the book by replacing the bus with images of the red tractor.
Review Excerpts:
"A brilliantly simple book that is absolutely true to life, as anyone who interacts with an obdurate three-year-old can attest...Pigeon is an unflinching and hilarious look at a child's potential for mischief. In a plain palette, with childishly elemental line drawings, Willems has captured the essence of unreasonableness in the very young. The genius of this book is that the very young will actually recognize themselves in it." Dona Ratterree, New York City Public Schools --From School Library Journal
"In his winning debut, Willems finds the preschooler in a pigeon: a cajoling, tantrum-throwing, irresistible bird. Willems is a professional animator, and each page has the feel of a perfectly frozen frame of cartoon footage--action, remarkable expression, and wild humor captured with just a few lines. Preschoolers will howl over the pigeon's dramatics, even as they recognize that he wheedles, blows up, and yearns to be powerful just like they do." Gillian Engberg Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --From Booklist
Award:
2004 Caldecott Honorable Mention
Connections:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is the beginning of a series of books that follow the pigeon. This book should be read in series with the other pigeon books to allow children a full view of the pigeon's adventures. Each of the books have their own draw for young children, and most children will find something to identify with as the pigeon tries to stay up late, finds a hot dog, and wants a puppy.
Kitten's First Full Moon
Bibliographic Data:
Henkes, Kevin. 2004. Kitten's First Full Moon. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books. ISBN-13: 978-0060588281
Plot Summary:
In Kitten's First Full Moon, we meet a loveable kitten who thinks the full moon she sees shining in the sky is actually a bowl of milk. The kitten does everything she can think of to reach the bowl of milk in the sky, from stretching her neck and accidentally catching flies to climbing to the top of a tree. At the top of the tree, the kitten sees the moon's reflection in a pond and jumps into the even bigger bowl of milk. Wet and sad, the kitten returns home to find a real bowl of milk waiting for her. She laps the milk up and contentedly goes to sleep.
Critical Analysis:
Winner of the 2005 Caldecott Medal, Henkes uses simple writing with repetition to involve children in Kitten's plight. Children become part of the story as the writing seems to invite them to repeat the sentence, "Still there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting," which appears after nearly every attempt Kitten makes to get to the bowl of milk in the sky. My five year old began saying the sentence after we came across it the second time. She knew it was coming.
The language evokes emotions that young children can easily identify with and sympathize with Kitten. Throughout the book, phrases such as "poor Kitten" and descriptions like "she was wet and sad and tired and hungry" not only make the readers feel sorry for Kitten, but they also serve to build up the climax of the story and the happy ending as Kitten finds her own bowl of milk back at her house.
As the illustrator, Henkes evokes a nighttime setting with his black, white, and grey illustrations. Symbolically, these colors are usually associated with negativity, but for Kitten, it's simply part of the setting. There is no evil awaiting Kitten in the fields, just the bright white moon shining in the sky that she desperately wants to find. The depictions of Kitten convey her emotions so clearly. From Kitten's facial expressions, the reader can sense her determination, her desire, her cunning, her fear, and her happiness and contentment. The illustrations tell Kitten's story just as much of the words.
Review Excerpts:
"An irresistible offering from the multifaceted Henkes...Again and again, the feline's persistent attempts to reach her goal lead to pain, frustration, and exhaustion. Repetitive phrases introduce each sequence of desire, action, and consequence...The rhythmic text and delightful artwork ensure storytime success." -Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library --From School Library Journal
"*Starred Review* Henkes creates another winner in this simple, charming story about a naive little kitten who mistakes a round, shining moon for a bowl of milk. Henkes' text, reminiscent of Margaret Wise Brown's work in the elemental words, rhythms, and appealing sounds, tells a warm, humorous story that's beautifully extended in his shimmering, gray-toned artwork. Working in bold black lines and the silvery palette of moonlight, he creates a lovable, expressive character in the determined kitten..." Gillian Engberg Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --From Booklist
Award:
2005 Caldecott Medal
Connections:
Other books that use repetitive sentences or phrases would pair well with Kitten's First Full Moon. The classic children's book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? is one that could be paired as a responsive reading.
Kitten's First Full Moon is somewhat of an adventure tale as the Kitten goes on an adventure to get to the moon. Classroom discussions about adventures the students might have had could draw students into the book.
Discussion of why Kitten feels the way she does at certain points of the novel and how the readers know and for the readers to predict what they think will happen based off Kitten's facial expressions would allow young readers to practice the prediction and assumption skills that all good readers use as they read.
Henkes, Kevin. 2004. Kitten's First Full Moon. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books. ISBN-13: 978-0060588281
Plot Summary:
In Kitten's First Full Moon, we meet a loveable kitten who thinks the full moon she sees shining in the sky is actually a bowl of milk. The kitten does everything she can think of to reach the bowl of milk in the sky, from stretching her neck and accidentally catching flies to climbing to the top of a tree. At the top of the tree, the kitten sees the moon's reflection in a pond and jumps into the even bigger bowl of milk. Wet and sad, the kitten returns home to find a real bowl of milk waiting for her. She laps the milk up and contentedly goes to sleep.
Critical Analysis:
Winner of the 2005 Caldecott Medal, Henkes uses simple writing with repetition to involve children in Kitten's plight. Children become part of the story as the writing seems to invite them to repeat the sentence, "Still there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting," which appears after nearly every attempt Kitten makes to get to the bowl of milk in the sky. My five year old began saying the sentence after we came across it the second time. She knew it was coming.
The language evokes emotions that young children can easily identify with and sympathize with Kitten. Throughout the book, phrases such as "poor Kitten" and descriptions like "she was wet and sad and tired and hungry" not only make the readers feel sorry for Kitten, but they also serve to build up the climax of the story and the happy ending as Kitten finds her own bowl of milk back at her house.
As the illustrator, Henkes evokes a nighttime setting with his black, white, and grey illustrations. Symbolically, these colors are usually associated with negativity, but for Kitten, it's simply part of the setting. There is no evil awaiting Kitten in the fields, just the bright white moon shining in the sky that she desperately wants to find. The depictions of Kitten convey her emotions so clearly. From Kitten's facial expressions, the reader can sense her determination, her desire, her cunning, her fear, and her happiness and contentment. The illustrations tell Kitten's story just as much of the words.
Review Excerpts:
"An irresistible offering from the multifaceted Henkes...Again and again, the feline's persistent attempts to reach her goal lead to pain, frustration, and exhaustion. Repetitive phrases introduce each sequence of desire, action, and consequence...The rhythmic text and delightful artwork ensure storytime success." -Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library --From School Library Journal
"*Starred Review* Henkes creates another winner in this simple, charming story about a naive little kitten who mistakes a round, shining moon for a bowl of milk. Henkes' text, reminiscent of Margaret Wise Brown's work in the elemental words, rhythms, and appealing sounds, tells a warm, humorous story that's beautifully extended in his shimmering, gray-toned artwork. Working in bold black lines and the silvery palette of moonlight, he creates a lovable, expressive character in the determined kitten..." Gillian Engberg Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --From Booklist
Award:
2005 Caldecott Medal
Connections:
Other books that use repetitive sentences or phrases would pair well with Kitten's First Full Moon. The classic children's book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? is one that could be paired as a responsive reading.
Kitten's First Full Moon is somewhat of an adventure tale as the Kitten goes on an adventure to get to the moon. Classroom discussions about adventures the students might have had could draw students into the book.
Discussion of why Kitten feels the way she does at certain points of the novel and how the readers know and for the readers to predict what they think will happen based off Kitten's facial expressions would allow young readers to practice the prediction and assumption skills that all good readers use as they read.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Take One: Introduction and Rambling
Last semester, I started graduate school at TWU (Texas Woman's University) pursuing a Master's degree in Library Science. As a major part of one of my classes this semester, I have eighteen children's and young adult books to read and review. Here you will find those reviews.
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