THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A FLY retold by Simms Taback book review

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Taback, Simms, Trans.  1997.  THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A FLY.  New York:  Penguin Books USA Inc. ISBN  0670869392

2.  PLOT SUMMARY                     

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A FLY is a retelling of a folk poem that was introduced to the United States in the 1940’s. As with many other traditional tales, the original author is still unknown. This rhyming story begins with an old lady who, for reasons unknown, swallows a fly. After swallowing the fly, the phrase “perhaps she’ll die” is introduced. Next, she swallows a spider to catch the fly. Once again, the reader hears “perhaps she’ll die”. This pattern continues with the old lady purposely swallowing one animal in hopes of catching the animal previously swallowed, and wondering if she will die. After swallowing a bird, a cat, a dog, a cow and a horse, the story ends with the old lady dying because her stomach has grown extremely large.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This story has a remarkable style that will force readers to join in when listening to it read out loud. The repeated phrases such as “perhaps she’ll die” and “I don’t know why” will keep children on their toes eager to hear more. The catchy text, which is displayed as a collage of sentences against the old lady’s dress pattern, helps keep the flow of action in the story running smoothly. Through his vibrant illustrations, Taback gives clues for what it is to come. Newspaper clippings, signs and other artifacts are intricately woven into the illustrations. Before the animals are eaten, they are each seen giving clues and making comments about their own destiny such as the dog saying “I hope it’s a lie”. Simms Taback has strategically included a cut out in the shape of each animal that is being eaten in place of the old lady’s stomach on the appropriate page. This creates a fun visual for the reader to actually see the animals being eaten. Even though the story repeatedly mentions dying, it is done in such a silly manner that the reader will laugh instead of cry.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

*Caldecott Honor Book

*SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review:  “From cover to moral (never swallow a horse), this cleverly illustrated version of an old folk favorite will delight children.”

*KIRKUS REVIEWS:  “It is good fun to watch the old lady bulge and bloat, and the sheer corniness of the verse continues to be deeply gratifying.”

5. CONNECTIONS

*Using an old lady doll designed to accompany this book, children can retell the story as they put the various animals into the pouch in her stomach.

*After reading other variations of this tale, through shared writing, students can write a new variation that follows the same type of pattern. Students may choose someone they know such as a teacher or principal and have them swallow items related to their job.

*Other variations of this tale:

Sloat, Teri. THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A TROUT. ISBN 0805042946

Colandro, Lucille. THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED SOME LEAVES. ISBN 0545241987

Ward, Jennifer.  THERE WAS AN OLD MONKEY WHO SWALLOWED A FROG. ISBN 0761455809

THE THREE LITTLE GATORS by Helen Ketteman book review

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ketteman, Helen. 2009.  THE THREE LITTLE GATORS.  Ill. Will Terry.  Morton Grove, Illinois:  Albert Whitman & Company. ISBN  9780807578247

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

THE THREE LITTLE GATORS is a retelling of the traditional THREE LITTLE PIGS folktale. In this version, three gators leave their mother and set out on their own in an east Texas swamp. Before leaving, Mama warns them to build houses strong enough to keep Big-bottomed Boar away. The first gator chooses rocks, the second sticks and the lazy third gator chooses a house of sand, after commenting on the amount of work for the other two. Soon, Big-bottomed Boar announces his arrival at the third gator’s sand house and by wiggling his rump with a bump, bump, bump, he knocks the house down. The second gator’s house of sticks is knocked down in the same manner. Knowing the danger they are in, the second and third gators rush to their brother’s house that was made of rocks. After unsuccessfully trying to knock the house down with his rump, Big-bottomed Boar squeezes down the chimney right on top of the hot grate on the barbecue grill. With grill stripes burned into his rump, Big-bottomed Boar never bothered the gators again.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This story nicely lends itself to being read aloud. Children will delight in joining in the repetitive phrases such as “then I’ll wiggle my rump with a bump, bump, bump” or “little gator, little gator, let me in”. The simple mission of the gators to escape Big-bottomed Boar keeps the reader anticipating the final resolution. By having good triumph over evil, the reader is left satisfied. Will Terry’s bright, colorful illustrations enhance the text. The reader can see the fear in the eyes of the gators as Big-bottom Boar chases after them. He even has the first gator wearing glasses, to show he is the intelligent one. Children will enjoy seeing the pain Big-bottom Boar goes through at the end of the text.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY review: “Readers-particularly from the Lone Star State-who can't get enough of the original Three Little Pigs, may enjoy this Texan transformation from the team behind Armadilly Chili.”

BOOKLIST review: “Loaded with plenty of outlandish action from the bug-eyed, cartoonish characters rendered in glimmering colors, this would make a rip-roaring group read-aloud.”

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “But Ketteman’s retelling, including a sassy Texas twang, makes the story hilarious and bright. Add in a catchy chorus, repeated each time the Big-bottomed Boar comes visiting, and readers will be chiming in on cue.”

5. CONNECTIONS

*Students could research swamps by learning about animal life, characteristics and other facts or details. When finished, discuss how the author took the traditional tale of THE THREE LITTLE PIGS and modified it to match the setting in THE THREE LITTLE GATORS.

*As a class, students could make an interactive storyboard. Using large butcher paper, the swamp could be created. Next, hand or stick puppets could be created to resemble each of the characters in the story. Then, students could use the puppets to orally retell and act out the story in sequential order.

*Other versions/variants of this tale:

Marshall, James. THE THREE LITTLE PIGS. ISBN 0803705913

Rubin, Vicky. THE THREE SWINGIN’ PIGS. ISBN 0805073353

Brett, Jan. THE 3 LITTLE DASSIES. ISBN 0399254994

Artell, Mark. THREE LITTLE CAJUN PIGS. ISBN 0803728158

ANANSI AND THE TALKING MELON retold by Eric A. Kimmel book review

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kimmel, Eric A., Trans.  1994.  ANANSI AND THE TALKING MELON.  Ill. by Janet Stevens.  New York:  Holiday House. ISBN  0823411044

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

ANANSI AND THE TALKING MELON is a retelling of a West African folktale. This tale begins with Anansi the Spider sitting in a thorn tree that overlooks Elephant’s melon patch. Being too lazy to grow his own melons, Anansi decides to enjoy Elephant’s hard work. When the moment was right, Anansi snuck down to the melon patch and created a hole in one of the melons using a thorn from the tree. Crawling inside and eating until he was full, Anansi discovered a problem when he realized he was too fat to crawl back out of the hole. Deciding he was too bored to sit and do nothing until he was thin again, Anansi decided to play a trick on Elephant by making him think the melon was talking. Surprised that melons can talk, Elephant sets out to take his prize talking melon to the king. Along the way, Elephant shows the melon to his friends Hippo, Warthog, Ostrich, Rhino and Turtle, each of whom only believed Elephant after the melon directly insulted them. After the king is also insulted by this melon, he throws it as far as he could, all the way back to Elephant’s garden. Lucky for Anansi, the melon splits open and he is freed, all the while laughing at the animals for believing a melon could talk.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

ANANSI AND THE TALKING MELON is a soundboard for storytelling. The characters in this story represent the good and evil stereotypes of traditional tales. Anansi is selfish and wicked, taking pleasure at the cost of others. The innocence of the other animals is shown through their ignorance of believing in a talking melon. Sticking with the style of traditional tales, trickery plays a big part in this story. Children of all ages will look forward to the tricks and insults of Anasi from inside the melon. Janet Stevens innocent portrayal of the animals in her illustrations, helps the reader feel just as determined to get to the king as they are. The use of bright colors and the details such as the wrinkles on Elephant’s skin and the hair on Warthogs back, bring the animals to life.  

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL review: “The snappy narration is well suited for individual reading or group sharing. The colorful line-and-wash illustrations are filled with movement and playful energy.”

BOOKLIST: “With perfect pacing and repetition and with surprising reversals up to the very last page, this is a great choice for reading aloud and storytelling.”

5. CONNECTIONS

*Using a combination of the main animals from the story and two to three narrators, children could participate in a reader’s theater event. If needed, small masks could be made for the various animals roles.

*After hearing the story read aloud, students could participate in various sequencing activities. The teacher could assign animal roles to students who have to retell and sequence the story by acting it out. For younger children, the teacher could have animal picture cards for the students to sequence according to the order introduced in the story. Older children could actually create a “chain of events” graphic organizer to show their understanding of sequential order.

*Other Anansi books retold by Eric Kimmel:

ANANSI AND THE MOSS-COVERED ROCK. ISBN 0823407985

ANANSI AND THE MAGIC STICK. ISBN 0823417638

ANANSI GOES FISHING. ISBN 0823410226

FLOTSAM by David Wiesner Book Review

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wiesner, David. 2006. FLOTSAM. New York, NY: Clarion Books. ISBN 0618194576

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

In this wordless picture book, David Wiesner invites the reader to spend the day with a young boy at the beach. The boy begins the day examining typical flotsam (beach debris) such as a hermit crab when a giant wave grabs him and tosses him about. After recovering, he realizes an old Melville underwater camera has been washed ashore. Upon close examination of the camera, he discovers it has an undeveloped roll of film. Immediately, he takes it to the one hour photo shop and is amazed at what he unveils. The pictures show the underwater life we never knew existed. He was astonished when he took a closer look at the final picture and realized the generations of children across the world that have also made the same discovery. Therefore, the young boy decided to photograph himself to add to the legacy. It ends with a young girl on the other side of the world starting the whole process over again.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Wiesner’s choice of a wordless book challenges the reader to create their own text. By the lack of text, the story is open to endless interpretations. No matter the age of the audience, the reader is given the opportunity to interpret the story as simplistic or complex as needed. Readers of all ages can relate to making interesting discoveries whether at a beach or somewhere else.

David Wiesner’s use of watercolor brings certain realism into the page. Due to the sequence of illustrations, the reader is able to use these picture cues to help develop the minute details of the story. Wiesner’s choice of color invites the reader into his dreamlike world where they can be free to explore within their own imagination. The choice of black and white illustrations helps the reader to indentify with the time lapse that has taken place throughout the generations of children. The various nationalities present in the book allow the audience to relate to the characters, no matter their background.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

2007 Caldecott Medal Book

Starred review in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Filled with inventive details and delightful twists, each snapshot is a tale waiting to be told.”

Starred review in Kirkus Reviews: "In Wiesner's much-honored style, the paintings are cinematic, coolly restrained and deliberate...An invitation not to be resisted."

5. CONNECTIONS

* Gather multiple copies of the book. Put children into groups, giving each group a copy of the book. Have children work cooperatively in their groups to tell the story. Teacher acts as monitor only, not a participant in order to see what the students will say on their own.

*Use this story as a springboard for writer’s workshop. After the teacher reads the story to the class, brainstorm any flotsam (beach debris) students have found. If they have not been to a beach, the lesson could be modified to include anything found anywhere. Students can then use their own story or borrow a friend’s story to use as a writer’s workshop topic.

*Gather and read other wordless picture books written by David Wiesner such as:

FREE FALL. ISBN 0061567418

SECTOR 7. ISBN 0395746566

                          

ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY by Judith Viorst Book Review

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Viorst, Judith. 1972. ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY. Ill. by Ray Cruz. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks. ISBN 0689711735

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

In this very realistic picture book, Judith Viorst takes the reader through Alexander’s terrible day. As he wakes up, Alexander realizes he fell asleep with gum in his mouth, which is now in his hair. From there, his day only continues to get worse. Not only does his mother forget to put a dessert in his lunch, but the dentist finds a cavity in only him and at the shoe store, everyone finds the exact shoes they wished for except for Alexander. All throughout the story, Alexander expresses his wishes to move to Australia to escape these horrible events. However, in the end, his mom consoles him by saying that some days are just bad, even in Australia.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Viorst’s writing sounds just like it would be coming from a frustrated, young child’s mouth. She creates her own sense of style by ignoring many conventions of writing. Many times, we can hear Alexander rambling on in a complaining manner, without stopping to catch a breath, through her long, unpunctuated sentences. Viorst does an excellent job of creating a convincing Alexander who is having a horrible day. Children, even those having a bad day, can not help but laugh at poor Alexander and all of the many mishaps he encounters in a short period.

Ray Cruz’s monochrome illustrations help set the mood of the story. The lack of color helps to force the reader to keep a saddened, mellow tone. Even though his brothers, parents and friends all have neatly groomed hair, Alexander is always portrayed with wild, out of control hair. This helps the reader to see that he is just a mess in every aspect of the word. At his worse moments, Alexander is the only object illustrated on a page set against a complete white background. This shows his feelings of being all alone in the world.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Amazon.com Review – “Judith Viorst flawlessly and humorously captures a child's testy temperament, rendering Alexander sympathetic rather than whiny.”

George G. Stone Center Recognition of Merit

Georgia Children's Book Award

Reading Rainbow Book

5. CONNECTIONS

*Read the poem Life’s Not Been the Same in My Family by Jack Prelutsky. This poem is about how bad life is for the child since his new baby sister was born. Discuss which character is having a worse time and why? To conclude, children could think about a bad day they have had and draw a picture or write about it. When finished, the children could share their stories or illustrations.

*The teacher can check for student comprehension by having the students retell the story in comic strip form and/or act it out. Students might be required to include at least 5 scenes from the story, including a strong beginning, middle and end.

*Other books portraying children that think they are mistreated:

Polacco, Patricia. MY ROTTEN REDHEADED OLDER BROTHER. ISBN 0689820364

Blume, Judy. THE PAIN AND THE GREAT ONE. ISBN 0440409675         

                          

Book Review KNUFFLE BUNNY A CAUTIONARY TALE by Mo Willems

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Willems, Mo. 2004. KNUFFLE BUNNY A CAUTIONARY TALE. New York, NY: Hyperion Books for Children. ISBN 0786818700

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

In this very lighthearted picture book, Mo Willems invites the reader to experience the dramatic, everyday life of a frustrated toddler, Trixie. The story begins with daddy and Trixie on a routine trip to the Laundromat.  After helping Daddy with the laundry, Trixie and her father set out for their walk home.  On the way, much to her dismay, Trixie realizes she no longer has her beloved stuffed bunny, Knuffle Bunny, in her possession. Not realizing what his daughter is trying to convey through “AGGLE FLAGGLE KLABBLE”, Daddy becomes quite irritated. Luckily, Mommy knew the problem the moment they arrived home.  She joined the family in a trip back to the Laundromat to find Knuffle Bunny safely spinning in the washer. 

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Willems’ writing is appealing to young readers because he takes an everyday problem of a toddler and depicts the struggle of having this problem and not being able to communicate their needs. Toddlers are known for public displays of fits and bouts of dramatized behaviors. Children can easily connect with Trixie, possibly remembering a time they themselves experienced a similar struggle of adults not understanding their needs.  Adults too, can empathize with the daddy knowing that all adults have been in his shoes.

Mo Willems’ combination of cartoon illustrations and photographed scenery brings the book to life.  His use of line accentuates the overall emotions of the dynamic characters present throughout the text.  It helps the audience to read the characters feelings without reference to the text.  The contrast of brightly colored characters on top of the black and white photographs actually makes the characters pop off the page.  It is through the illustrations that the audience is given clues about Trixie’s upcoming problem.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

School Library Journal, Starred Review- “A seamless and supremely satisfying presentation of art and text.”

Caldecott Honor Book

Bccb Blue Ribbon Picture Book Award

Booklist, Starred Review – “Willems chronicles this domestic drama with pitch-perfect text and illustrations that boldly depart from the spare formula of his previous books.”

5. CONNECTIONS

*Lead a discussion over a time when you lost something or a time when your parents did not understand what you wanted.

*Read KNUFFLE BUNNY TOO: A CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY  ISBN 1423102991 by Mo Willems and discuss how Trixie’s character has developed and/or matured from one book to another.  Depending on the age, children can work in groups to complete a venn diagram comparing Trixie in both books.

*Read other books written by Mo Willems

            DON’T LET THE PIGEON STAY UP LATE ISBN. 0786837462

            KNUFFLE BUNNY FREE: AN UNEXPECTED DIVERSION.

ISBN 0061929573

DON'T LET THE PIGEON DRIVE THE BUS. ISBN 078681988X