1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Sierra, Judy. 2005. SCHOOLYARD RHYMES: KIDS OWN RHYMES FOR ROPE SKIPPING, HAND CLAPPING, BALL BOUNCING, AND JUST PLAIN FUN. Ill. by Melissa Sweet. New York: Alfred A. Knopf: an imprint of Random House Children’s Books. ISBN: 0375825169.
2. PLOT SUMMARY
SCHOOLYARD RHYMES: KIDS OWN RHYMES FOR ROPE SKIPPING, HAND CLAPPING, BALL BOUNCING, AND JUST PLAIN FUN is not a story with a plot, but a compilation of 50 classic English language rhymes brought together by Judy Sierra. With the combination of nonsense, rude, silly, and love rhymes, this book invites read alouds and active participation for children of any age.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
From nonsense rhymes such as “Anna Banana" and “Silence in the Court” to rude and crude rhymes such as “BURP! Pardon me for being so rude” and “My mother, your mother lives across the street” to just down right silly rhymes such as “I love myself, I think I’m great” and “The King of France, lost his underpants,” Sierra has compiled a wide range of rhymes that allows children to easily listen to and remember the rhymes and allows adults to reminisce about their time spent on the playground resisting these rhymes while playing with their friends.
Melissa Sweet, the illustrator, adds fun and creative illustrations that add to the wackiness of the book. For every rhyme Sweet uses a mix of illustration techniques to create her illustrations. She uses the painterly techniques of watercolors and pencil sketching in combination with the graphic technique of creating collages of cloth to make the various pictures in the book. To draw the attention of the reader to the illustrations, she has even taken the rhymes written on the page and made them a part the illustration by making the featured rhymes a picture frame, a candied apple stick and more prominently a jump rope. This in combination with her great use of expression on the featured characters faces adds to the silliness of the book and creates a fun read for children and adults.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “Sweet's animated watercolor-and-collage illustrations fill the pages with expressive faces, thin lines of verse shaped into jump ropes and borders, and hilarious interpretive scenes from the rhymes. This is a definite winner, as it will be enormously popular with children.”
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY review: “Schoolyard Rhymes: Kids' Own Rhymes for Rope Skipping, Hand Clapping, Ball Bouncing, and Just Plain Fun by Judy Sierra contains 50 rhymes perfect for recess or after-school play…”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Divide children up into groups and assign them one rhyme and act out in front of the class. If doing this activity with older children, let the older children go down to the younger grades and teach the students they rhyme with the movements.
*To help increase reading fluency, place several these rhymes on chart paper and practice repeating the rhymes with students. After students are confident with rhymes, at recess bring out the jump ropes and encourage children to say rhymes as they are jump roping or playing games with one another outside.
Other books with rhymes and chants for children:
Dunn, Sonja. GIMME A BREAK, RATTLESNAKE!: SCHOOLYARD CHANTS AND OTHER NONSENSE. Ill. by: Mark Thurman. ISBN: 9780773756960
Opie, Iona Archibald. MY VERY FIRST MOTHER GOOSE. Ill. by: Rosemary Wells. ISBN: 9781564026200
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Book Review: THE MYSTERIOUS GIANT OF BARLETTA: AN ITALIAN FOLKTALE
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
dePaola, Tomie. 1984. THE MYSTERIOUS GIANT OF BARLETTA: AN ITALIAN FOLKTALE. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company. ISBN: 0152563474
2. PLOT SUMMARY
During the eleventh century in the Italian town of Barletta, there stood an enormous statue of a young man. No one in the town knew how it got there, not even the oldest resident in town, Zia Concetta, but they loved their “Mysterious Giant.” When the town was to come under attack by a thousand soldiers, Zia went to the giant to ask for help. Surprisingly, the giant stepped down from his pedestal, and together the giant and Zia came up with an idea to keep the soldiers from destroying their town. In order for the plan to work, Zia calls the townspeople to the square and asks for three things: a cut open onion, for the townspeople to stay completely out of sight, and for no one to ask any questions. The townspeople followed Zia’s directions and the giant went to face the army. When the army came upon the giant, he was sobbing. The army inquired as to why the giant was sobbing and he told them a story about how the boys at his school wouldn’t play with him because he was the smallest boy in school. He went on and on about how they would beat him up, and how someday he’d get bigger and stronger and eventually beat up them up. These words made the lieutenant and the army think twice about attacking Barletta, for fear that the town was full of giants. and they retreated. Everyone in the town was grateful for what the giant had done, the giant reclaimed his spot on the pedestal, and town life got back to normal.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
THE MYSTERIOUS GIANT OF BARLETTA, is a simply told folktale that is easy to follow from beginning to end. dePaola’s use of Italian phrases and words such as “Buona notte, Colosso”, “Che bella festa!” and minuscolo” help connect the tale with its Italian roots and bring the culture to life for the reader, which make the story seem more authentic. Furthermore, dePaola’s illustrations, which where were created by using the painterly techniques of watercolor and tempera paints, mirrored the text provided on each page and add to the depth of understand of the story.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
THE BULLETIN review: "The illustrations are among dePaola's best: rigorous line and expressive movement against an atmospheric background of rich golds, blues, and reds.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*As a class research the town of Barletta, Italy and truth behind the “Mysterious Giant of Barletta.”
*Other folktales featuring giants:
Weiss, Jim. GIANT: A COLOSAL COLLECTION OF TALES AND TUNES. ISBN: 9781882513178
Gleeson, Brian. FINN MCCOUL. ISBN: 9781596792234
Cushman, Doug. GIANTS. ISBN: 9780448474861
dePaola, Tomie. 1984. THE MYSTERIOUS GIANT OF BARLETTA: AN ITALIAN FOLKTALE. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company. ISBN: 0152563474
2. PLOT SUMMARY
During the eleventh century in the Italian town of Barletta, there stood an enormous statue of a young man. No one in the town knew how it got there, not even the oldest resident in town, Zia Concetta, but they loved their “Mysterious Giant.” When the town was to come under attack by a thousand soldiers, Zia went to the giant to ask for help. Surprisingly, the giant stepped down from his pedestal, and together the giant and Zia came up with an idea to keep the soldiers from destroying their town. In order for the plan to work, Zia calls the townspeople to the square and asks for three things: a cut open onion, for the townspeople to stay completely out of sight, and for no one to ask any questions. The townspeople followed Zia’s directions and the giant went to face the army. When the army came upon the giant, he was sobbing. The army inquired as to why the giant was sobbing and he told them a story about how the boys at his school wouldn’t play with him because he was the smallest boy in school. He went on and on about how they would beat him up, and how someday he’d get bigger and stronger and eventually beat up them up. These words made the lieutenant and the army think twice about attacking Barletta, for fear that the town was full of giants. and they retreated. Everyone in the town was grateful for what the giant had done, the giant reclaimed his spot on the pedestal, and town life got back to normal.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
THE MYSTERIOUS GIANT OF BARLETTA, is a simply told folktale that is easy to follow from beginning to end. dePaola’s use of Italian phrases and words such as “Buona notte, Colosso”, “Che bella festa!” and minuscolo” help connect the tale with its Italian roots and bring the culture to life for the reader, which make the story seem more authentic. Furthermore, dePaola’s illustrations, which where were created by using the painterly techniques of watercolor and tempera paints, mirrored the text provided on each page and add to the depth of understand of the story.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
THE BULLETIN review: "The illustrations are among dePaola's best: rigorous line and expressive movement against an atmospheric background of rich golds, blues, and reds.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*As a class research the town of Barletta, Italy and truth behind the “Mysterious Giant of Barletta.”
*Other folktales featuring giants:
Weiss, Jim. GIANT: A COLOSAL COLLECTION OF TALES AND TUNES. ISBN: 9781882513178
Gleeson, Brian. FINN MCCOUL. ISBN: 9781596792234
Cushman, Doug. GIANTS. ISBN: 9780448474861
Book Review: CENDRILLON: A CARIBEEN CINDERELLA
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
San Souci, Robert D. 1998. CENDRILLON: A CARIBBEAN CINDERELLA. Ill. by Brian Pinkney. New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing. ISBN 068980668X
2. PLOT SUMMARY
The picture book CENDRILLON is a Caribbean version of the fairy tale CINDERELLA. The story is told from the point of view of Cendrillon’s “nannin” or godmother, who was bequeathed a magical wand of mahogany from her mother with instructions that she can only use the wand’s powers on someone she loves. Cendrillon’s mother died, and her father Monsieur married again to Madame Prosperine and produced Vitaline, Cendrillon’s half sister. As Cendrillon grows up, she is made to work like a “serving-girl” for her family. Cendrillon’s nannin feels helpless to assist her until one day Cendrillon mentions that there is a birthday ball for Paul, a handsome boy in town, and she isn’t allowed to go. Nannin’ decides to help Cendrillon go to the birthday ball, by using her wand to help turn ordinary household items such as food and animals into a coach, six carriage horses, five footman, a beautiful dress, and pink slippers. Nannin’ accompanies Cendrillon to the birthday ball and warns her that the magic only lasts for a short time, so they need to leave before midnight. While at the ball Cendrillon catches the attention of Paul, and they spend the entire night dancing with each other until Nannin’ rushes Cendrillon away from the ball because it was almost midnight. As she leaves, Cendrillon leaves behind a pink slipper which Paul finds. The next day, Paul travels the town to try and find the owner of the slipper. He finally arrives at Cendrillon’s residence, where Madame tries to shove Vitaline’s foot into the pink slipper, but it doesn’t fit. With convincing from Nannin’, Cendrillon appears in the house and Paul has her try on the slipper which, of course, fits, and Paul and Cendrillon get married.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The author does a wonderful job of merging the fairy tale of CINDERELLA with the Caribbean culture to create the story CENDRILLON. The traditional plot elements of girl getting mistreated, godmother uses magic so she can go to the ball, girl looses slipper and the boy rescues and marries her, are evident in CENDRILLON, but there are slight differences such as there is only one evil sister and she is a half sister at that. The reader is also treated to some of the back-story of the godmother and how she got her magic. To infuse the story with the culture of the Caribbean, the author chose to use a mix of English and French Creole words and phrases. To assist readers in the understand of the French Creole language the author provides meanings to these words right after they are used in text and a glossary at the end of the story with correct pronunciations.
Furthermore, the illustrations add credence to the tropical setting through the use of vibrant colors such as purple, yellow, blue, and pink with lush plants and flowers that appear in every picture. His use of light colored lines throughout every illustration helps give the appearance of movement without there actually being any. The illustrations in conjunction with the words blend beautifully together to help give a new and much needed spin to CINDERELLA so other cultures can relate to the fairy tale as well.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
LIBRARY SCHOOL JOURNAL Review: “The result is an outstanding Cinderella variant for any collection.”
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Review: “Through this colorful and deeply human godmother, readers witness the enduring power of love.”
BOOKLIST Review: “There are many variations of the Cinderella story, and this version, set on the island of Martinique, is particularly vibrant, both in its melodious language and its spirited art.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Share with students the traditional version of CINDERELLA, and then share CENDRILLON so students can compare and contrast the stories.
*Share with students the CENDRILLON: A CARRIBEAN CINDRELLA, and then share CENDRILLON: A CAJUN CINDERELLA so students can compare and contrast the stories.
*Study other folktales from the Caribbean and try to find cultural similarities that are stated or implied throughout the tales.
Other cultural variants of CINDERELLA
Collins, Sheila Hebert. CENDRILLON: A CAJUN CINDERELLA. Ill. by Patrick Soper. ISBN: 1565543262
dePaola, Tomie. ADELITA: A MEXICAN CINDERELLA. ISBN: 9780142401873
Hickox, Rebecca. GOLDEN SANDEL: A MIDDLE EASTERN CINDERELLA STORY. Ill. by Will Hillenbrand. ISBN: 9780823415137
Martin, Rafe. ROUGH-FACE GIRL. Ill. by David Shannon. ISBN: 9780698116269
San Souci, Robert D. 1998. CENDRILLON: A CARIBBEAN CINDERELLA. Ill. by Brian Pinkney. New York: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing. ISBN 068980668X
2. PLOT SUMMARY
The picture book CENDRILLON is a Caribbean version of the fairy tale CINDERELLA. The story is told from the point of view of Cendrillon’s “nannin” or godmother, who was bequeathed a magical wand of mahogany from her mother with instructions that she can only use the wand’s powers on someone she loves. Cendrillon’s mother died, and her father Monsieur married again to Madame Prosperine and produced Vitaline, Cendrillon’s half sister. As Cendrillon grows up, she is made to work like a “serving-girl” for her family. Cendrillon’s nannin feels helpless to assist her until one day Cendrillon mentions that there is a birthday ball for Paul, a handsome boy in town, and she isn’t allowed to go. Nannin’ decides to help Cendrillon go to the birthday ball, by using her wand to help turn ordinary household items such as food and animals into a coach, six carriage horses, five footman, a beautiful dress, and pink slippers. Nannin’ accompanies Cendrillon to the birthday ball and warns her that the magic only lasts for a short time, so they need to leave before midnight. While at the ball Cendrillon catches the attention of Paul, and they spend the entire night dancing with each other until Nannin’ rushes Cendrillon away from the ball because it was almost midnight. As she leaves, Cendrillon leaves behind a pink slipper which Paul finds. The next day, Paul travels the town to try and find the owner of the slipper. He finally arrives at Cendrillon’s residence, where Madame tries to shove Vitaline’s foot into the pink slipper, but it doesn’t fit. With convincing from Nannin’, Cendrillon appears in the house and Paul has her try on the slipper which, of course, fits, and Paul and Cendrillon get married.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The author does a wonderful job of merging the fairy tale of CINDERELLA with the Caribbean culture to create the story CENDRILLON. The traditional plot elements of girl getting mistreated, godmother uses magic so she can go to the ball, girl looses slipper and the boy rescues and marries her, are evident in CENDRILLON, but there are slight differences such as there is only one evil sister and she is a half sister at that. The reader is also treated to some of the back-story of the godmother and how she got her magic. To infuse the story with the culture of the Caribbean, the author chose to use a mix of English and French Creole words and phrases. To assist readers in the understand of the French Creole language the author provides meanings to these words right after they are used in text and a glossary at the end of the story with correct pronunciations.
Furthermore, the illustrations add credence to the tropical setting through the use of vibrant colors such as purple, yellow, blue, and pink with lush plants and flowers that appear in every picture. His use of light colored lines throughout every illustration helps give the appearance of movement without there actually being any. The illustrations in conjunction with the words blend beautifully together to help give a new and much needed spin to CINDERELLA so other cultures can relate to the fairy tale as well.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
LIBRARY SCHOOL JOURNAL Review: “The result is an outstanding Cinderella variant for any collection.”
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Review: “Through this colorful and deeply human godmother, readers witness the enduring power of love.”
BOOKLIST Review: “There are many variations of the Cinderella story, and this version, set on the island of Martinique, is particularly vibrant, both in its melodious language and its spirited art.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Share with students the traditional version of CINDERELLA, and then share CENDRILLON so students can compare and contrast the stories.
*Share with students the CENDRILLON: A CARRIBEAN CINDRELLA, and then share CENDRILLON: A CAJUN CINDERELLA so students can compare and contrast the stories.
*Study other folktales from the Caribbean and try to find cultural similarities that are stated or implied throughout the tales.
Other cultural variants of CINDERELLA
Collins, Sheila Hebert. CENDRILLON: A CAJUN CINDERELLA. Ill. by Patrick Soper. ISBN: 1565543262
dePaola, Tomie. ADELITA: A MEXICAN CINDERELLA. ISBN: 9780142401873
Hickox, Rebecca. GOLDEN SANDEL: A MIDDLE EASTERN CINDERELLA STORY. Ill. by Will Hillenbrand. ISBN: 9780823415137
Martin, Rafe. ROUGH-FACE GIRL. Ill. by David Shannon. ISBN: 9780698116269
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Book Review: PICTURE THIS: HOW PICTURES WORK
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bang, Molly. 2000. PICTURE THIS: HOW PICTURES WORK. New York: SeaStar Books. ISBN 9781587170300
2. PLOT SUMMARY
In this very informative book, Molly Bang explores how the size, shape, color, and placement of pictures affect the emotions and perceptions of the viewer. To aid her in the discussion of this topic, she uses the story LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD. She shows several examples of different, self created pictures and explains how slight differences made in each picture evoke different emotions from viewers. Bang's also moves beyond LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD and creates new pictures to demonstrate ten principles of pictures she created to help explain the results of her exploration into pictures.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The structure of Molly Bang’s book is superb. She goes into great detail about each picture, telling the reader what emotions the pictures evoke and why in clear, easy to understand manner. The illustrations are made of geometric shapes such as rectangles, triangles, and semi-circles just to name a few. These shapes also appear in various colors and sizes as well. All the shapes are simply made, but when combined together stir up different emotions just by the angle the shape is on the page or whether it is on the top or the bottom of the page. Her easy to understand explanations and geometric pictures, help the reader grasp a better understanding of the perceptions and the emotions people feel once the pictures are viewed.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT
THE HORN BOOK review: “…PICTURE THIS extends the imagination, encourages creativity, and helps readers reexamine their world and themselves from different perspectives. One senses that it has the power to change anyone willing to admit its magic.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Apply the knowledge learned from this book to analyze other books illustrated by Molly Bang and/or other authors.
* Using the same method of creating illustrations as Molly Bang, assign children a certain line or chunk of text from a popular fairy tale and have them create illustrations using simple geometric shapes of various sizes and colors. Then on the back of the illustration, have the children explain why they used certain colors and shapes to create the picture.
Books about picture analysis:
Lacy, Lyn Ellen. ART AND DESIGN IN CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK: AN ANALYSIS OF CALDECOT AWARD-WINNING BOOKS. ISBN: 9780838904466
Evans, Dilys. SHOW AND TELL: EXPLORING THE FINE ART OF CHILDREN’S BOOK ILLUSTRATION. ISBN: 9780811849715
Other books that feature illustrations by Molly Bang
Bang, Molly. WHEN SOPHIE GETS ANGRY-REALLY REALLY ANGRY… ISBN: 9780439598453
Bang, Molly. TEN, NINE, EIGHT. ISBN: 9780688149017
Bang, Molly. THE PAPER CRANE. ISBN: 9780688073336
Bang, Molly. 2000. PICTURE THIS: HOW PICTURES WORK. New York: SeaStar Books. ISBN 9781587170300
2. PLOT SUMMARY
In this very informative book, Molly Bang explores how the size, shape, color, and placement of pictures affect the emotions and perceptions of the viewer. To aid her in the discussion of this topic, she uses the story LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD. She shows several examples of different, self created pictures and explains how slight differences made in each picture evoke different emotions from viewers. Bang's also moves beyond LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD and creates new pictures to demonstrate ten principles of pictures she created to help explain the results of her exploration into pictures.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The structure of Molly Bang’s book is superb. She goes into great detail about each picture, telling the reader what emotions the pictures evoke and why in clear, easy to understand manner. The illustrations are made of geometric shapes such as rectangles, triangles, and semi-circles just to name a few. These shapes also appear in various colors and sizes as well. All the shapes are simply made, but when combined together stir up different emotions just by the angle the shape is on the page or whether it is on the top or the bottom of the page. Her easy to understand explanations and geometric pictures, help the reader grasp a better understanding of the perceptions and the emotions people feel once the pictures are viewed.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT
THE HORN BOOK review: “…PICTURE THIS extends the imagination, encourages creativity, and helps readers reexamine their world and themselves from different perspectives. One senses that it has the power to change anyone willing to admit its magic.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Apply the knowledge learned from this book to analyze other books illustrated by Molly Bang and/or other authors.
* Using the same method of creating illustrations as Molly Bang, assign children a certain line or chunk of text from a popular fairy tale and have them create illustrations using simple geometric shapes of various sizes and colors. Then on the back of the illustration, have the children explain why they used certain colors and shapes to create the picture.
Books about picture analysis:
Lacy, Lyn Ellen. ART AND DESIGN IN CHILDREN’S PICTURE BOOK: AN ANALYSIS OF CALDECOT AWARD-WINNING BOOKS. ISBN: 9780838904466
Evans, Dilys. SHOW AND TELL: EXPLORING THE FINE ART OF CHILDREN’S BOOK ILLUSTRATION. ISBN: 9780811849715
Other books that feature illustrations by Molly Bang
Bang, Molly. WHEN SOPHIE GETS ANGRY-REALLY REALLY ANGRY… ISBN: 9780439598453
Bang, Molly. TEN, NINE, EIGHT. ISBN: 9780688149017
Bang, Molly. THE PAPER CRANE. ISBN: 9780688073336
Book Review: LEONARDO AND THE TERRIBLE MONSTER
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Willems, Mo. 2005. LEONARDO AND THE TERRIBLE MONSTER. New York: Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 0786852941
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Mo Willems presents a delightfully amusing story about Leonardo, a monster who cannot scare anyone. Physically he is compared to monsters like Tony, who has 1, 642 teeth, Eleanor who is so big you cannot see her entire body, and Hector who looks weird. Leonardo is none of these things, but he decides to practice silly faces and wacky moves in an effort to try and be scary, but his plan doesn't work. Then Leonardo comes up with an idea to find a child who, he thinks, will scare easily and try to scare him. Once Leonardo finds Sam, someone who Leonardo perceives to be easily scared, he sneaks up behind him and gives it his best effort to scare the “tuna salad” out of him. When Sam cries, Leonardo proclaims victory, but Sam quickly lets him know that he was not scared and vents to Leonardo the true reason behind his tears. When Sam was done, Leonardo makes a very important decision. He decides instead of trying to be a terrible monster, he is going to be a wonderful friend.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Mo Willems’s entertaining story idea and humorous writing are what make this story picture book shine. The plot is wonderfully creative and gives readers many ways to relate to the story. Readers can find personal connections in this story through the themes of determination, sympathy, not fearing monsters, and friendship. A standout element of the story is Willems's use of all capital letters for the text throughout the story. Furthermore, the author/illustrator’s hi-lighting of certain words in different colors, catches the attention of and forces the reader to focus on that particular word or phrase on the page, which was usually the main word or phrase on the page. Though this is a story about a “terrible monster” the author does a great job of creating a monster book that children of all ages can enjoy.
The illustrations also add another dimension to the story which helps Williems’s intended audience not fear the “terrible monster.” Willems takes special care to make the monsters look nonthreatening to the reader. From his color palate of pale greens, blues, peaches, purples, and grays to his use of curved lines to draw all the illustrations, including a smile on almost all of the monsters faces, Willems’s monsters are seen as not harmful and on the border line of comical.
He even takes it a step further, by having a backdrop setting. Instead of the story taking place in a forest, the wood, or in the country, Willems uses the same pale colors to fill in the background which takes out one huge element that could possibly scare children and forces the reader to focus solely on the characters in the story. With the focus solely on the characters, readers are able to see Willems’s wonderful job conveying feelings and emotions in the faces of Leonardo and Sam. One look at either of their faces and readers will defiantly be able to predict what feeling the character is trying to express. Overall, Willems's use of color and lines helps to create a book about a “terrible” monster seem not so scary to the books intended audience of readers.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
BOOKLIST review: “A winner for story hours, with plenty of discussion possibilities”
KIRKUS review: “The highly predictable ending is made fresh by the superb control of pacing, just-zany-enough sense of humor and body language readers have come to expect from the creator of Pigeon and Knufflebunny.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*The text used when Sam is explaining to Leonardo about why he is crying is one long run on sentence. After reading the story, I would have Sam’s explanation typed on a sheet of paper and run off for my students. Then I would have my students revise the writing putting in appropriate punctuation.
*This book also opens the door to real children's issues such as friendship, determination, not being scared of monsters, and sympathy which could be topics in a discussion group after the story is read.
*Other books related to the various themes of Leonardo and the Terrible Monster:
Friendship:
Raschka, Chris. YO!YES?. ISBN: 9780439921855
Not Fearing Monsters:
Emberley, Ed. GO AWAY, BIG GREEN MONSTER!. ISBN: 9780316236539
Determination
Raatma, Lucia. DETERMINATION. ISBN: 9780736813877
Willems, Mo. 2005. LEONARDO AND THE TERRIBLE MONSTER. New York: Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 0786852941
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Mo Willems presents a delightfully amusing story about Leonardo, a monster who cannot scare anyone. Physically he is compared to monsters like Tony, who has 1, 642 teeth, Eleanor who is so big you cannot see her entire body, and Hector who looks weird. Leonardo is none of these things, but he decides to practice silly faces and wacky moves in an effort to try and be scary, but his plan doesn't work. Then Leonardo comes up with an idea to find a child who, he thinks, will scare easily and try to scare him. Once Leonardo finds Sam, someone who Leonardo perceives to be easily scared, he sneaks up behind him and gives it his best effort to scare the “tuna salad” out of him. When Sam cries, Leonardo proclaims victory, but Sam quickly lets him know that he was not scared and vents to Leonardo the true reason behind his tears. When Sam was done, Leonardo makes a very important decision. He decides instead of trying to be a terrible monster, he is going to be a wonderful friend.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Mo Willems’s entertaining story idea and humorous writing are what make this story picture book shine. The plot is wonderfully creative and gives readers many ways to relate to the story. Readers can find personal connections in this story through the themes of determination, sympathy, not fearing monsters, and friendship. A standout element of the story is Willems's use of all capital letters for the text throughout the story. Furthermore, the author/illustrator’s hi-lighting of certain words in different colors, catches the attention of and forces the reader to focus on that particular word or phrase on the page, which was usually the main word or phrase on the page. Though this is a story about a “terrible monster” the author does a great job of creating a monster book that children of all ages can enjoy.
The illustrations also add another dimension to the story which helps Williems’s intended audience not fear the “terrible monster.” Willems takes special care to make the monsters look nonthreatening to the reader. From his color palate of pale greens, blues, peaches, purples, and grays to his use of curved lines to draw all the illustrations, including a smile on almost all of the monsters faces, Willems’s monsters are seen as not harmful and on the border line of comical.
He even takes it a step further, by having a backdrop setting. Instead of the story taking place in a forest, the wood, or in the country, Willems uses the same pale colors to fill in the background which takes out one huge element that could possibly scare children and forces the reader to focus solely on the characters in the story. With the focus solely on the characters, readers are able to see Willems’s wonderful job conveying feelings and emotions in the faces of Leonardo and Sam. One look at either of their faces and readers will defiantly be able to predict what feeling the character is trying to express. Overall, Willems's use of color and lines helps to create a book about a “terrible” monster seem not so scary to the books intended audience of readers.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
BOOKLIST review: “A winner for story hours, with plenty of discussion possibilities”
KIRKUS review: “The highly predictable ending is made fresh by the superb control of pacing, just-zany-enough sense of humor and body language readers have come to expect from the creator of Pigeon and Knufflebunny.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*The text used when Sam is explaining to Leonardo about why he is crying is one long run on sentence. After reading the story, I would have Sam’s explanation typed on a sheet of paper and run off for my students. Then I would have my students revise the writing putting in appropriate punctuation.
*This book also opens the door to real children's issues such as friendship, determination, not being scared of monsters, and sympathy which could be topics in a discussion group after the story is read.
*Other books related to the various themes of Leonardo and the Terrible Monster:
Friendship:
Raschka, Chris. YO!YES?. ISBN: 9780439921855
Not Fearing Monsters:
Emberley, Ed. GO AWAY, BIG GREEN MONSTER!. ISBN: 9780316236539
Determination
Raatma, Lucia. DETERMINATION. ISBN: 9780736813877
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Book Review: KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Henkes, Kevin. 2004. KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON. United States of America: Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0060588284
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Who knew a story about a kitten and a moon could be so entertaining, but famed author Kevin Henkes manages to create an adventure like no other. In KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON, readers are introduced to a female kitten who mistakenly thinks the full moon is a bowl of milk that she so desperately wants. In order to capture her “bowl of milk” she stretched her neck, sprang from porches, climbed up trees, raced through grass, and even leaped with all her might, but she was unable to get her “bowl of milk.” As she walks home, defeated, the kitten is surprised with a bowl of real milk waiting for her on the porch.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Kevin Henkes’s writing of a naive kitten who mistakes the moon for a bowl of milk would be a wonderful picture storybook to share with children in Pre – K through 4th grade. Henkes word choice is simple to understand, yet uses vivid words to describe the actions of the kitten throughout the story. The use of repetitive phrases such as “Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting.”and “Poor Kitten!” helps to make the book an interactive read aloud because children will be able to hear the pattern and participate in the reading of the story.
The Caldecott winning illustrations also add another layer to this story. Stories that occur during night can sometimes appear scary to children because of all the dark colors, but Henkes avoids this pitfall by using pale grays and whites to create the appearance of night without making it intimidating to children. He also uses rounded edges and lines when drawing the kitten features such as her whiskers, paws, , ears, and tale. The plants featured in the story such as leaves, flowers, and trees also are drawn with rounded edges which makes the overall pictures in the book less threatening. The illustrations also align quite well with the text on the page. On several pages he has multiple pictures that where draw in conjunction with the text. Children could very easily use the illustrations along with the text to help them read the story, which is a sign of an effective picture book.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY review: “The narrative and visual pacing will keep children entranced, and the determined young heroine and her comical quest will win them over.”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “The rhythmic text and delightful artwork ensure storytime success.”
BOOKLIST review: “…the elemental words, rhythms, and appealing sounds, tells a warm, humorous story that's beautifully extended in his shimmering, gray-toned artwork.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Discuss the difference between regular verbs (examples: run and jump) and “vivid verbs” (examples: chased and sprang) with students. Read the story and have students find examples of vivid verbs and create a class list for writing.
*Do an author study on Kevin Henkes by completing other read alouds of Henkes’ books and compare plot, characters, and illustrations.
*Other books for children about the moon (recommended by SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL)
Asch, Frank. MOONGAME. ISBN: 9780689835186
Wallace, Nancy Elizabeth. THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS. ISBN: 9780618263530
Henkes, Kevin. 2004. KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON. United States of America: Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0060588284
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Who knew a story about a kitten and a moon could be so entertaining, but famed author Kevin Henkes manages to create an adventure like no other. In KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON, readers are introduced to a female kitten who mistakenly thinks the full moon is a bowl of milk that she so desperately wants. In order to capture her “bowl of milk” she stretched her neck, sprang from porches, climbed up trees, raced through grass, and even leaped with all her might, but she was unable to get her “bowl of milk.” As she walks home, defeated, the kitten is surprised with a bowl of real milk waiting for her on the porch.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Kevin Henkes’s writing of a naive kitten who mistakes the moon for a bowl of milk would be a wonderful picture storybook to share with children in Pre – K through 4th grade. Henkes word choice is simple to understand, yet uses vivid words to describe the actions of the kitten throughout the story. The use of repetitive phrases such as “Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting.”and “Poor Kitten!” helps to make the book an interactive read aloud because children will be able to hear the pattern and participate in the reading of the story.
The Caldecott winning illustrations also add another layer to this story. Stories that occur during night can sometimes appear scary to children because of all the dark colors, but Henkes avoids this pitfall by using pale grays and whites to create the appearance of night without making it intimidating to children. He also uses rounded edges and lines when drawing the kitten features such as her whiskers, paws, , ears, and tale. The plants featured in the story such as leaves, flowers, and trees also are drawn with rounded edges which makes the overall pictures in the book less threatening. The illustrations also align quite well with the text on the page. On several pages he has multiple pictures that where draw in conjunction with the text. Children could very easily use the illustrations along with the text to help them read the story, which is a sign of an effective picture book.
4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY review: “The narrative and visual pacing will keep children entranced, and the determined young heroine and her comical quest will win them over.”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “The rhythmic text and delightful artwork ensure storytime success.”
BOOKLIST review: “…the elemental words, rhythms, and appealing sounds, tells a warm, humorous story that's beautifully extended in his shimmering, gray-toned artwork.”
5. CONNECTIONS
*Discuss the difference between regular verbs (examples: run and jump) and “vivid verbs” (examples: chased and sprang) with students. Read the story and have students find examples of vivid verbs and create a class list for writing.
*Do an author study on Kevin Henkes by completing other read alouds of Henkes’ books and compare plot, characters, and illustrations.
*Other books for children about the moon (recommended by SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL)
Asch, Frank. MOONGAME. ISBN: 9780689835186
Wallace, Nancy Elizabeth. THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE STARS. ISBN: 9780618263530
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