THE THREE PIGS

THE THREE PIGS

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wiesner, David, 2001. THE THREE PIGS. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN:  0618007016

PLOT SUMMARY
This tale begins familiarly with "Once upon a time there were three pigs."  The first pig decided to build a house out of straw and then along came the wolf who said "little pig, little pig, let me come in."  And the pig answered, 'not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin."  Then the wolf "huffed and he puffed and he blew the house in..."  But wait!  The wolf blew so hard, he blew the pig right out of the story!  The story continues with the wolf going to the next pig's house made out of sticks.  The same thing happens and now two pigs are out on an adventure of their own.  On the next page, they join the third pig and then they completely turn the story upside down (literally)!  They all three totally exit the book and the illustrations show them walking on the pages of the book.  They have text bubbles that show what they are saying.  Then they build a paper airplane out of one of the pages of the book and go on a flying expedition through several more pages of the story.  On one page, they almost completely fly out of the book (or so it seems!).  Then their adventure takes them into other stories.  They visit a Mother Goose book and meet the cat and the fiddle and the cow who jumped over the moon.  Then they meet a dragon.  The cat and the fiddle and the dragon join them when they rejoin their own story and "go back home."  In the end, nobody gets eaten and "they all lived happily ever aft."  (guess the "er" fell off the page too!) 


CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This fractured fairy tale is hilarious!  Wiesner uses such creativity and what a surprise this will be to the young readers when they see the first pig blown "out of the story" and the perplexed look on the wolf's face!  I love how he incorporated other tales that the young readers would know as well, such as the cat and the fiddle and the cow who jumped over the moon.  This is a very creative spoof of the original story.  It is a very visual book and the illustrations tell the story for several pages.  Wiesner uses dialogue balloons to tell part of the story.  The looks on the wolf's face are priceless!  He is so confused.  By the end, I think that he just gives up although we don't really know what happened to him.  And as in all fairy tales, there was a happy ending!

AWARDS
Caldecott Medal 2002

REVIEW EXCERPTS
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY:
"Wiesner's 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."

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL, Starred:
"Children will delight in the changing perspectives...and the whole notion of the interrupted narrative...fresh and funny...Witty dialogue and physical comedy abound in this inspired retelling of a familiar favorite."

BOOKLIST, ALA Starred Review:
Wiesner has created a funny, wildly imaginative tale that encourages readers to leap beyond the familiar; to think critically about conventional stories and illustration, and perhaps, to flex their imaginations and create wonderfully subversive versions of their own stories."

CONNECTIONS
This imaginative story provides opportunities for predicting outcomes and retellings and prompting creative writing.

This book will also make a great companion to other fractured fairy tales, Jon Scieszka's "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs" and the seriously silly book, ECO-WOLF AND THE THREE PIGS. 

This story could even be presented as a Reader's Theatre.  I think that there are many different ways that a teacher can incorporate these varied stories within a lesson.

SWAMP ANGEL

 

SWAMP ANGEL

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Isaacs, Anne, 1994. SWAMP ANGEL. Ill by Paul Zelinsky. NewYork, NY: Dutton Children's Books. ISBN 0525452710

PLOT SUMMARY
In this hugely entertaining, inspiring story about Angelica Longrider who was born in 1815 who was "scarcely taller than her mother and couldn't climb a tree without help," Isaacs creates an unlikely heroine.  In this traditional tall tale about Swamp Angel (who got her name from saving passengers of a wagon train that "got mired in Dejection Swamp") competes against the Tennessee men in trying to kill Thundering Tarnation, a huge bear who ate all of the settlers' food.  The men taunted Swamp Angel asking her if "she should be home mending a quilt or baking a pie?"  She replied, "I aim to....a bear pie."  After Tarnation got the worst of all of the men, Swamp Angel and the giant bear get into an incredible brawl where Swamp Angel swings a tornado around like a giant lasso, drinks a whole lake dry and snores down a whole forest and eventually defeats the bear!  In this hugely exaggerated tall tale, Swamp Angel manages to create The Great Smoky Mountains, Ursa Major (The Big Bear constellation) and the Montana Shortgrass Prairie with her enormous shenanigans.  By the end of the story, Swamp Angel is a hero and the whole state of Tennessee celebrates with her in the "biggest celebration the state had ever known."  

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
In this original traditional tall tale, Isaacs uses exaggeration and a primitive style of wording to tell the story that is set in 1815.  The story is hilarious from beginning to end.  You know right from the beginning that you are in for an enormous tale without even reading the words.  The illustrations in this book steal the show!  They are superb.  Swamp Angel 's mother is holding this gigantic baby (Swamp Angel) in the very first picture.  Throughout the book, Zelinsky creates pictures of Swamp Angel doing outlandish and impossible things.  She almost seems to be too big for the book because she is bending over in the pictures on the pages.  Her name fits her face which always is shown with an "angelic" smile and she wears a bonnet just to remind us that she is a girl afterall.  Not to discount the brilliant writing of Isaacs, but I think that I could only look at the pictures and still know what happened in the story.  This was a very entertaining and inspiring tale showing a girl overcoming huge odds to help save her community!

AWARDS
1994 Caldecott Honor Book
1995 Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book
1994 ALA Notable Book 
NEW YORK TIMES Best Illustrated Books of 1994
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL Best Books of 1994
BOOKLIST Children's Editors Choices 1994
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY Best Books of 1994

REVIEW EXCERPTS
"Move over, Paul Bunyan, you are about to meet Swamp Angel, an original creation in the tall-tale tradition whose exploits are guaranteed to amaze and amuse a wide swath of readers. . . Visually exciting, wonderful to read aloud, this is a picture book to remember." -- starred review, HORN BOOK, March/April 1995, M.M.B.

"It is Ms. Isaacs's dry, tongue-in-cheek style, moving us from possibility to impossibility, matched by the stunning primitive and burlesque-style oil paintings done on wood veneers by Paul O. Zelinsky, that makes this book one of the most intriguing and hilarious tall tales to be published in recent years. . . There are very few tall tales about extraordinary women in American folklore compared to those that extol the virtues of men, and this comic rendition about a gifted, powerful and helpful woman is in all ways superb." -- NEW YORK TIMES, 11/13/94, by Jack Zipes
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL:
"She (Isaacs) captures the cadence of the genre perfectly with its unique blend of understatement, exaggeration, and alliteration. Zelinsky paints his primitive views of Americana with oil on veneer, a choice that gives each page a grainy border, well suited to this backwoods tale. A master of composition, he varies readers' perspectives by framing the portrait of the newborn and, later, the series of male hunters with small ovals. He uses double-page lunettes to depict the massive bear and woman sprawled across the pages, and places the menacing beast lunging over the frame in another memorable scene. The pictures and words cavort across the page in perfect synchronization, revealing the heroine's feisty solution." Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA, 1994

CONNECTIONS
This story has a female hero which is not very common.  This is a great opportunity to teach young girls (and boys) that girls can accomplish anything boys can and that they can be leaders in their communities.

This book could be used to introduce Science or Socal Studies lessons to discuss The Great Smoky Mountains, The Montana Shortgrass Prairie and even to introduce astronomy lessons about the stars and the universe.

Pair this picture book with Lester and Pinkney's JOHN HENRY for a gigantic tall-tale celebration.

Another must read is DUST DEVIL, an entertaining companion to SWAMP ANGEL also written by Anne Isaacs and illustrated by Paul Zelinsky.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A CLOAK FOR THE MOON

A CLOAK FOR THE MOON

 

 

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kimmel, Eric. 2001. A CLOAK FOR THE MOON. Ill by Katya KIremina. New York, NY: Holiday House. ISBN 0823414930

 

PLOT SUMMARY
In this mystical story, Haskel, a tailor who lives in Tzafat (a city in Israel), goes to his rooftop every night to gaze at the beautiful moon.  One night, he has a dream in which the moon tells him that she is very cold and that she wishes for him to make her a cloak to keep warm.  When Haskel awakes, he declares "Dream or not, I will keep my promise and I will sew the moon a cloak of shining silver thread and all the stars will envy her."  He goes to his uncle, a master tailor, to ask for help.  But, his uncle tells him to "stop chasing dreams."  Haskel then learns of a magical thread made of beams of light that will stretch and shrink to fit its wearer perfectly.  So, he goes in search of this fabric knowing that it will be perfect for the moon to wear as she waxes and wanes.  He travels afar to China and eventually to a city named The Roof of the World where a princess needs help mending her wedding dress made of beams of light. Nobody in town knows the secret of spinning the thread, but Haskel discovers that focusing moonlight on the thread through his magnifying dress makes the thread weave itself.  He mends the princess's dress and is given some of the thread as a reward.  On his journey home he weaves the thread each night by the moonlight.  When he arrives back home, the magical cloak is complete and he delivers it to the moon just as he promised he would. 

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
In this book, Kimmel, retells this mystical and enchanting folktale beautifully.  He captures the spiritual feeling and culture with his elegant words.  The themes of determination to keep a promise and of following your dreams are prevalent in this story.  The story also implies that part of chasing your dreams is about embracing the journey along the way.  Haskel is an ordinary person that is able to achieve an impossible dream! 

The illustrations are gouache paintings that enhance the story perfectly.  Krenina captures the Far Eastern settings with vivid colors and beautiful landscapes.  She also is able to depict the magical qualities in the story successfully.
  

EXCERPTS
PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY:

Expertly pacing the story, Kimmel embroiders his prose with graceful details, writing of "radiant satins [and] silks like colored water." The exotic trappings will lure readers, replacing Haskel's determination to keep his promise as the central theme of the work. Intermittently embellished by borders and spot art featuring delicate flower motifs, Krenina's gouache art effectively depicts the Middle and Far Eastern settings of the tale, as well as its timeless sensibility.

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL:
This unique, beautifully written story is enhanced by vividly colored, luminous gouache paintings of equal quality.-Anne Parker, Milton Public Library, MA.

BOOKLIST:
Impossible dreams and magical desires fulfilled by dint of persistence and unwavering belief underlie this lovely narrative. GraceAnne DeCandido, ALA.

CONNECTIONS
I think that this story could be used in many lessons regarding character and values.  It is a good story to use to teach children the value of never giving up, following through on your promises and of following your dreams.  It shows that determination can help drive a person to be successful in whatever they want to achieve. 

Other folktales about values:
In Rabbi Edward M. Feinstein's collection of folktales, CAPTURING THE MOON, we can find other stories about values and character. Stories in this collection of classic and modern folktales include: "What Really Matters in Life?", "Doing What s Right," "It s Up to You," "Teachers and Friends," and "Hidden Truths."  

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Kitten's First Full Moon-Book Review

 

 

Kitten's First Full Moon



BIBLIOGRAPHY
Henkes, Kevin. 2004. KITTEN'S FIRST FULL MOON. Ill. by Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0-06-058828-4.

PLOT SUMMARY
When Kitten sees her first full moon she thinks it is a bowl of milk just waiting for her.  She tries many different ways to get to it, but with no luck.  In the end she goes home feeling sad, but then her luck turns when she finds an actual bowl of milk waiting on the porch for her!

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This picture storybook is written in a very simple style.  Henkes attracts the attention of young readers with his predictable phrases, such as "Poor Kitten" and "Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting."  This is an action-packed adventure story with Kitten chasing, running, jumping, and climbing to reach the bowl of milk.  The surprise at the end reminds me a bit of "Where the Wild Things Are" when Kitten returns home to find a bowl of milk waiting for her.  That sense of "home is where the heart is" is brought alive in this book as well.

The illustrations in this book tell more about the story than just the words.  Even though they are just simple shaded pictures, they help add to the story.  Some pages have full pictures, while others show panels almost like a comic strip.  The pictures show emotion and action.  At one point, it looks to me like Kitten gets lost (because she looks scared) after she follows the moon (or the bowl of milk) "down the sidewalk, through the garden, past the field and by the pond."  My six year old daughter loved this book because she enjoyed looking at the pictures.  She asked me to read it to her three times in a row!  At the very beginning of the book before you get to the Title Page, there are Cover Pages that are gray with lots of white circles in rows.  Before we read the book aloud (which is the best way to enjoy picture books in my opinion!), she asked, "what are those circles?"  This was a perfect opportunity for me to say, "let's read the book and then you tell me, okay?"  At the end of the story, I asked her what she thought they were.  She said, "moons" and then paused and said, "no, bowls of milk!" 

AWARDS
2005 Caldecott Medal
ALA Notable Children’s Book
Charlotte Zolotow Award
Booklist Editors’ Choice
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books Blue Ribbon
Kirkus Reviews Editors’ Choice
Publishers Weekly Best Book
School Library Journal Best Book
New York Times Best Illustrated Book
Book Sense Top Ten Pick

REVIEW EXCERPTS
"The narrative and visual pacing will keep children entranced, and the determined young heroine and her comical quest will win them over." Publisher's Weekly

"The rhythmic text and delightful artwork ensure storytime success.  Kids will surely applaud this cat's irressible spirit."  School Library Journal

"Artful in its gracelessness and naivete, just like a kitten. Simply charming." Kirkus Reviews

CONNECTIONS
This books helps teachers connect with students through visualization and showing them to use their imaginations.  It also could lead to science and discovery lessons about what is in the sky and about how light reflects on water, for example.

Other books to consider if you liked this book are:
Carle, Eric. 1991. PAPA, PLEASE GET THE MOON FOR ME. Simon & Schuster, ISBN-13:978-0887080265

Gag, Wanda. 1928. MILLIONS OF CATS. Coward. ISBN-13:978-0142407080





 

Where The Wild Things Are-Book Review



BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sendak, Maurice. 1963. WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. Ill. by Maurice Sendak. New York, NY. Harper & Row.  ISBN 0-06-025492-0

PLOT SUMMARY

Max, a young boy, is sent to his room with no dinner because he was misbehaving.  While in his room, his imagination runs wild.  A forest grows in his room and he travels through the forest and across the sea to where the wild things are. The wild things make him their king and they all join in a wild rumpus!  Eventually though, Max becomes homesick and returns to the security of his own room where surprisingly he finds his supper waiting for him!

 

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This story reminds me of my childhood and about what fun you can have if you only use your imagination!  When Max is sent to his room for misbehavior he realizes that he can run away by imaginging that he is somewhere where others will understand him.  The wild things are intended to be scary when they "roar their terrible roars, gnash their terrible teeth, roll their terrible eyes and show their terrible claws", but then Max tames them with magic and they all continue to have fun!  Max experiences the joys of independence and individuality, but he also realizes that at home is where he is loved the most.

 

The illustrations in this book are absolutely amazing. Without these pictures, the story just wouldn't be the same.  They are brilliant and full of life and color.  Sendak does a superb job in showing "scary" monsters that aren't really that scary after all--they are maybe even a little bit funny! The "wild rumpus" pages are absolutely my favorite.  They don't even need words to tell the story as they all jump and howl at the moon, swing through the trees and march in a parade through the jungle.  These pictures make lasting images in young readers minds and adults alike.  This is a picture book that has been enjoyed through the ages and will be for many more to come because of its connections to realistic emotions.

 

AWARDS

1964-Caldecott Medal Award

1970-Sendak became the first American illustrator to receive the international Hans Christian Andersen Award for his entire body of work.

1983-Laura Ingalls Wilder Award from the American Library Association for his entire body of work.

 

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Barnes & Noble Editorial Reviews:

"Sendak presents an image of children not as sentimentalized little dears but as people coping with complex emotions such as anger, fear, frustration, wonder, and awareness of their own vulnerability."

 

"Marvelous pictures and the superb story combine to make this a quintessential picture book. In it, readers will recognize their own wild side."

 

"Where the Wild Things Are" is one of the most popular picture books of all time exemplifying Sendak's incredible knowledge of the textual narrative through illustration.

-Ty Hulse
Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ty_Hulse

 

CONNECTIONS
This book has many thematic elements, such as: fantasy, misbehavior, discipline, imagination, play.  Lesson plans could be designed around each of these elements, although I would think that they would most easily be geared toward pre-school and early elementary students.     

 

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type-Book Review

 

 



Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type



 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cronin, Doreen. 2000. CLICK, CLACK, MOO: COWS THAT TYPE. Ill by Betsy Lewin. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division. ISBN 9780689832130

PLOT SUMMARY

In this book, Farmer Brown discovers a problem.  His cows spend all day typing on a typewriter!  As the story moves on, the cows end up leaving Farmer Brown notes demanding items for themselves and their friends, the hens. But when Farmer Brown does not answer their demands, they go on strike and type, "no milk, no eggs."  Farmer Brown is not happy with their demands and he gives them an ultimatum, which they respond to quite surprisingly (for cows and hens, that is)!  The end is unexpected and very funny when the ducks learn a few tricks from the cows and the hens.

 

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Cronin writes this picture storybook in a simple style so that children can understand.  Her style is frank and she uses phrases that are predictable which makes it fun to read aloud. My six year old daughter had to "read" the "click, clack, moo" phrases all on her own each time.  When we finished, she was ready to read it again.   

 

The illustrations by Lewin are superb!  The drawings are bold and colorful.  The expressions that she puts on the animals' faces and Farmer Brown's face are amazing.  She shows many different emotions throughout the book including anger, surprise, confusion, stubbornness and happiness all while making the pages interesting and funny! The illustrations were my six year old's favorite part.  She loved looking at their eyes and pointing out the "angry arms" in Farmer Brown's shadow.  She also thought it was funny that cows have hooves and wondered how they could type on the little buttons.    

 

REVIEW EXCERPTS

The fabulous watercolors and crisp text of the typewritten notes will woo young readers. And the hilarious ingenuity of the courageous cows and hens will inspire and amuse.

--Amy Barkat, Barnes & Noble Editorial Review

 

This hilarious story with a surprise ending is a great tribute to fair play and introduces the power of communication in a way that even the youngest listener will enjoy.
—Esme Raji Codell, Bookbag Magazine

 

AWARDS

2001 Caldecott Honor Book

Named one of The Best Children's Books 2000 by Publisher's Weekly

 

CONNECTIONS

The lessons of compromise and negotiation are taught in this book.  I think that it also shows children that they have rights too and that sometimes they have to stand up for those rights even if it means questioning authority. This picture storybook also brings technology into play.  I find it funny (as in interesting) that most children reading this book now probably haven't ever even seen a typewriter!  This book gives us a way to talk about how technology is evolving in our world. In addition, the author also uses vocabulary terms that might be new for younger readers, such as, "going on strike", impatient, furious, neutral and ultimatum which could allow for a vocabulary lesson as well. .Even though the story is unique and fun, it's the pictures that I enjoyed the most.  Other books illustrated by Betsy Lewin include its sequels Giggle, Giggle, Quack, Duck for President, Dooby Dooby Moo and Thump, Quack, Moo.