Current Reads & Reviews: Traditional Literature A Caldecott Honor Book RUMPELSTILTSKIN

Zelinsky, Paul O. Rumpelstiltskin. New York.: E.P. Dutton., 1986. ISBN: 0140058640

Summary: A retelling of Grimm's fairy-tale, this is a story of survival due to deception led on by greedy men. A woman's struggle to stay alive by gaining the help of a little man with his own mischievous plan. There is a lesson to be learned here.

Analysis: Rumpelstiltskin derives from the medieval times when being rich and royal was worth sacrificing things and those held dear.  A story of good versus evil where both seem to be rewarded here. Beautiful oil paintings throughout make this medieval retelling of Grimm's story visually appealing. The shimmer and glimmer of the gold colors convey the richness of this little tale with each turn of the page. The facial expressions on the characters faces project the emotions creating the mood in the story.

The clothing, landscapes, and architecture correctly depict the medieval times. After reading this to my seventh graders. they all agreed that "the pictures had a medieval feel to it." One student stated, "I liked how the miller's daughter found his [Rumpelstiltskin] name out by being sneaky and how she played it out by saying the wrong name before the correct one!" My students were curious as to why Rumpelstiltskin wanted the child for himself. Another student said, "this story has a good moral... don't be something that you are not."

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Best Books For Children; Best Of The Best For Children; Books For Growing Minds; Best Books For Children: Preschool-Grade 6 - Eighth Edition; Newbery & Caldecott Medal & Honor Books; School Library Journal Best Books Of The Year

From Kirkus Review 09/15/1986: "Zelinaky's illustrations are opulently painted, full of classical architectural detail, fantastic distant landscapes, and that early use of perspective which gives a raked stage effect."

From School Library Journal 10/01/1986: "Zelinsky's painterly style and rich colors provide an evocative backdrop to this story. The medieval setting and costumes and the spools of gold thread which shine on the page like real gold are suggestive of an illuminated manuscript. Without overpowering the text, the illustrations give depth and background, providing exquisite texture and detail."

Connections: Read Grimm's version of Rumpelstiltskin and do a comparison on the illustrations as well as the text. Have students write a sequel to the story or have them create the background story for the character Rumpelstiltskin as there is a lot left unsaid like why he volunteers to help the miller's daughter and why he wanted her first born child.

Current Reads & Reviews: Traditional Literature Variant of The Three Pigs

Wiesner, David. The Three Pigs. New York: Clarion Books, 2001. ISBN: 06180087016

Summary: This beautifully illustrated version of The Three Pigs is hilarious and will have you and the little ones laughing out loud. As the pigs build their homes out of straw, sticks, and bricks. when suddenly "the wolf huffed and he puffed, and he blew" the pigs right out of their own story venturing them into other traditional tales meeting new characters along the way. Take flight with the three pigs to see where they might end up.

Analysis: This Caldecott award winning version of the original Three Little Pigs is quite different and very creative. The illustrations Wiesner has created are eye-catching and beautiful. He applies a variety of styles throughout this storybook. One page will look like the traditional tale, the next switching to comic book line drawings with little dialogue bubbles that show the pig's perspectives providing humor that will have you and the young ones giggling. I love how the pigs manipulate the pages of the story, for instance, taking the wolf's page and folding it into an airplane to transport them out of their story into new ones. I love how that very page ends up wrinkled and wrecked once they land. My favorite illustration is where the pigs are half in the story and half out. I like how Wiesner depicts this by applying different textures to the pigs. Each page is visually fun keeping the reader wondering where will the pigs end up next. It is really cool how the setting is the book itself! This plot will have students' imaginations running wild while making connections to other familiar tales they have heard, weaving in the old with the new.

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Bulletin Of The Center For Children's Books-Recommended Titles 1996; Books And More For Growing Minds April 2001; School Selection Guide: E Classification Titles To Order K-8; Best Books For Children: Preschool-Grade 6 

From School Library Journal 04/01/2001: "Witty dialogue and physical comedy abound in this inspired retelling of a familiar favorite."

From Booklist 05/15/2001: "Wiesner's latest is a post-modern fantasy for young readers that takes Scieszka's fragmentation a step further: it not only breaks apart and deliciously reinvents the pigs' tale, it invites readers to step beyond the boundaries of story and picture book altogether."

Connections: Read other versions and variants of this story as there are many and have students make comparisons between them ending with them working together to create their own version of the story to share. Start with the Disney classic The Three Little Pigs, follow that with David Wiesner's version, then ending with the one from the Wolf's perspective called The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka, Lane Smith.

Current Reads & Reviews: Traditional Literature - Folktale

Morales, Yuyi. Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 2003.  ISBN: 0811837580

Summary: Grandma Beetle is working away cleaning, cooking, and stuffing piñatas while Señor Calavera waits patiently to take her away, but not before Grandma sits down to celebrate another year in her life with her grandchildren and all the yummy food.

Analysis: Señor Calavera seems to represent death knocking on Grandma Beetle's door, but Grandma has other important things on her mind... Family. This beautiful picture book is a great representation of the Mexican culture. Grandma does all she can to thwart the skeleton always asking for "Just a minute..." as she cleans and cooks for her upcoming birthday celebration. Done in acrylic and media paper, the vibrant colors lure the eyes in to all the little details on each page and give the feel of motion almost as if they were dancing through the day. The little kitten follows Grandma throughout the story always by her side. This is a story about the celebration of life and family all the while teaching children how to count in both English and Spanish. Each new number is broadcast in big black bold letters. Those and the repeated phrases will have children reading them out loud along with you. 

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Pura Belpre Awards and Honors 1996; School Selection Guide: Nonfiction Titles To Order K-8; Best Books For Children: Preschool-Grade 6; Tomas Rivera Mexican-American Book Award Winners 2004 and many more.

From Publisher's Weekly 12/01/2003: "Like the best folktales, the darker motivation for the skeleton's visit remains elusive for youngest readers, and the sly interplay between hostess and visitor makes light of his role. Morales whips up a visually striking book, and funny to boot. Her deep, glowing pastels and stylized human characterizations beautifully conjure the traditions of Latin American muralists, while Señor Calavera's ghoulish, goofy gallantry would make him the comic lead of any Day of the Dead festivity."

From Booklist 12/01/2003: "Like the text, the rich, lively artwork draws strongly upon Mexican culture, with hints of Diego Rivera in Grandma's robust form, and the skeleton resembling the whimsical figurines often seen in Day of the Dead folk art. The splendid paintings and spirited storytelling--along with useful math and multicultural elements--augur a long, full life for this original folktale."

Connections: This counting book would be a good companion when teaching children to count in English and in Spanish. Pair up with other picture books that teach English and Spanish: My Colors, My World/Mis Colores, Mi Mundo by Maya Christina Gonzalez and/or The Moon is La Luna: Silly Rhymes in English and Spanish by Jay M. Harris, Matthew Cordell.

Current Reads & Reviews: A Classic Picture Book

Brown, Margaret Wise. Goodnight Moon. New York: HarperFestival, 2007.
Hurd, Clement. 2007. Goodnight Moon. by Margaret Wise Brown. New York: HarperFestival.
            ISBN 0694003611

Summary: This is a sweet little storybook about a little bunny needing to get to sleep, but not before he says goodnight to all that he loves in his colorful room.

Analysis: Goodnight Moon is a classic storybook board-book that is an excellent read for the little ones, though the story will comfort anyone. We enter into the little bunny's room, surrounded by all his little knickknacks and friends keeping him company, everything in bold bright colors. The little things spread out will have children actively participating in this read. Each character is having their own adventure... the little mouse and kittens will pop up in different places as you turn the pages, keeping the eyes of the children exploring the illustrations throughout. Children will see reflections of themselves in these characters. Brown's wordplay with assonance, rhyme, and repeated phrases will entice the little reader to join along.

It is Hurd's illustrations that has the reader feeling like they are transforming from an awake state to a dreamlike state. He conveys this by the vibrant colors changing to black and white projecting a sleepiness as the room slowly darkens throughout the story. The shift from lightness to darkness has the effect of closing one's eyes as sleep is taking over. With the room immersed in darkness and the accent lighting from the the warmth of the fire and the moon lurking outside the window with the bright stars leaves one feeling restful, peaceful.

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Alaska's Association Of School Librarians Battle Of The Books Nominees 2003-04; Publisher's Weekly Children's Books Fall 1997; Horn Book Guide Reviews 2002 Spring; CLS Basic Juvenile - Board Books 2001

From Publisher's Weekly 08/20/2001: "An oversize board book edition of Goodnight Moon makes the great green room larger than ever, allowing readers to trace with ease the tiny mouse that appears in each spread."

Connections: Read the companion storybooks beginning with The Runaway Bunny and ending with My World. Both written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd.

Current Reads & Reviews: Award Winning Illustrator Betsy Lewin

Lewin, Betsy. Where Is Tippy Toes? New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2010.
             ISBN: 1416938087

Summary: Where is Tippy Toes? is about the adventures of a cat and the places he hides throughout the day, however, no one seems to know where he sneaks off to at night. Travel through a day in the life of the mischievous Tippy, exploring all that he does and just maybe you will find out where it is he hides out during the night.

Analysis: What a fun little read! Enter into a day in the life of a curious, daring, stealthy cat with a playful personality. This is the cutest little story with beautiful illustrations that are big and bold. The die-cut pages really pop, grabbing your attention. The changing vibrant colors, making this storybook visually appealing, show progression throughout the day. Lewin's use of bold and bright colors truly create the mood from the beginning to the end of Tippy's day. The cutouts on some of the pages give the reader the feeling of being sneaky, hiding right along with Tippy Toes. My favorite page was where his tail is camouflaged with the cattails and, of course, the pulling back the blanket part...

Lewin's play with words gives a fluid flow with rhythm and rhyme. The alliterations and repeated phrases project a nice cadence. My 8th graders said they "loved how each page led to the next" and they thought it was "a good way to make a small child feel comfort before bedtime." When I had finished the last page and closed the book, one student stated, "It made me happy." I think anyone and everyone will leave feeling cheerful after experiencing this story and its painterly colored pages. Great for the little ones!

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: The Bulletin of the Center for Children Books - Recommended Titles 1996; September 2010 and Horn Book Guide Reviews 2011 Spring.

From School Library Journal 09/01/2010: "Oversize watercolors outlined in a thick black line add humor to the text and the bright hues seen in the flowers, sun, and cat's fur enhance the changing backgrounds. Rhyming sentences come together with the turn of a page and continue to the satisfying page turn at the end. This cat's sun up to sun down routine makes an excellent choice for a new bedtime story."

From Publisher's Weekly 07/05/2010 "Tippy Toes is an orange cat with expressive lime-green eyes and a penchant for exploration. Gentle rhymes speculate on Tippy's self-assured movements."

Connections: Good Night Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd (Illustrator) and Tuck Me In! by Dean Hacohen, Sherry Scharschmidt (Illustrator) and I Spy With My Little Eye by Edward Gibbs would be great companion books. Students can compare the illustrations and the hidden elements within them.

Current Reads & Reviews: The Caldecott Medal Picture Book

Floca, Brian. Locomotive. NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2013. ISBN: 1416994157

Summary: The children's picture book, Locomotive, brings you back to the summer of 1869 to America's first transcontinental railroad. The illustrations and text take you traveling across country through plains, mountains, and oceans all while conveying the speed, strength, and sounds the train endures through its course from the East coast to West coast.

Analysis: As you read Locomotive, you will find that the illustrations tell the story transporting you along as the locomotive travels from coast to coast on the newly built railroad. Right inside the front of the book cover one will learn the history of and view the map of the transcontinental railroad, then in the very back there is an image of the locomotive with an extensive explanation of steam power, how it works and runs the train, including all the "bells and whistles" that make up the locomotive. I read this to my 7th grade students and they felt it was more for 4th through 6th grade levels. The students all agreed that the mood changes as the illustrations change. One student said, "You feel the sleepiness at night and happiness at the end of their journey." The text might be a bit wordy for the younger ages and there is cursive incorporated throughout that could be a challenge for some to read, but is a very informative nonfiction easy reader.

A highly visual concept book, this is a story full of onomatopoeia creating sound, speed, strength, and feeling throughout the text with different colors and larger fonts that pop. The beautiful painterly watercolors project a feeling of progression through vast landscapes as well as action and the hard work it takes to keep the locomotive on track. The reader learns how all the parts and people come together to create, build, and maintain a new way of transportation. The colors used throughout gives the feeling of going back in time to the olden days. The clothing and landscapes project accurate depictions of the 1800s. Locomotive's illustrations will grab the eyes of anyone.

Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Earning in 2014 The Caldcott Medal, The Robert F. Sibert Honor Book, and the NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor book award and many more accolades.

From Booklist 07/01/2013: "Just as heart pounding are Floca's bold, detailed watercolors, which swap massive close-ups of barreling locomotives with sweeping bird's eye views that show how even these metal giants were dwarfed by nature."

From School Library Journal 07/01/2013: "Simple sketched people and backgrounds, striking views of the locomotive, and broad scenes of unpopulated terrain are framed in small vignettes or sweep across the page. Though a bit technical in explaining engine parts, the travelogue scheme will read aloud nicely and also offers absorbing details for leisurely personal reading. Substantial introductory and concluding sections serve older readers."

Connections: Locomotive would be a great extension when teaching American history, geography, and the expansion of the transcontinental railroad.

One could do a lesson on text-to-text connections, text-to-world, and text-to-self connections with other picture books written and illustrated by Brian Floca. For instance, students can view the different ways of transportation and make connections and comparisons using Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11, Lightship; Five Trucks; The Racecar Alphabet.