Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story by Ed Young - 1990 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China is a book by Ed Young. Released by Philomel, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1990.
Book Review by Laura Harmon
Lon Po Po is an adaptation of Little Red Riding Hood from China. In Young's version the mother leaves her three children for the day, Shang, Tao, and Paotze, to visit their grandmother on her birthday. While the mother is gone a wolf, dressed as their grandmother, Po Po, comes to try to eat them. The oldest daughter Shang is clever and outsmarts the wolf. The relevance of this folk tale to the article Strong Women in Appalachian Folktales is the importance of the female protagonist.
A female protagonist in a folktale is a rarity. Male protagonists over shadow females in twentieth century tales. Shang is the female protagonist in Lon Po Po. Not only does she defeat the wolf but she outsmarts him as well. It is important that she is portrayed as the clever heroin so that contemporary children have more positive role models than the heroines in the best-known traditional fairytales (225). In Lon Po Po, the wolf does not fool Shang as little red riding hood was in the European tale. Shang realizes from the start that the wolf is trying to trick her. When she asks the wolf about his fur and his claws she is simultaneously planning a way to get rid of him. Appalachian folktales are tales that were adapted in America. Many made the female protagonist stronger than the previous European version. Ed Young readapted the tale of little red riding hood in the same way. In the original European version the wolf eats the grandmother. There are no women in this Chinese rendition that fall victim to the wolf.
Folktales inevitably change when retold by another culture. However, there are some similarities in the way that Appalachian folktales and Chinese folktales changed. They both highlight the strengths of female characters and give them an even bigger role than their original one.
Song and Dance Man by Karen Ackerman
1989 Caldecott Medal Winner
Song and Dance Man is the title of a 1988 book by Karen Ackerman and illustrated by Stephen Gammell. It won the 1989 Caldecott Medal. The plot deals with a grandfather who tells his grandchildren about his adventures on the stage.
Book Review
This delightful book written by Karen Ackerman depicts a fun and loving relationship between a grandfather and his grandchildren. The children are delighted with their grandfather's antics and his tales of a time long ago when he was young, dancing on the vaudeville stage. The book depicts the grandfather as an energetic and vivacious elderly person and a joy for his grandchildren. Young children will love the vibrant and colorful llustrations by Stephen Gammell which add a sense of excitement and reality to the story.
Note to teachers: This book can be used in a unit pertaining to family and would be an excellent source for teaching another area of diversity, the elderly.
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
1988 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Owl Moon is a 1987 children's picture book by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr. The book won many awards, most notably being the Caldecott Medal for its illustrations, and has appeared on the show Reading Rainbow. Owl Moon has been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages, including French, German, Chinese, and Korean. A song by Bruce O'Brien is about this book.
Yolen described the book as, "a positive family story. It's about a girl and her father. Usually stories of a little girl are with her mother. It is gentle yet adventurous, quiet yet full of sound".
Book Review by Kristen Arnold
Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen, is a wonderfully told story. It is a perfect story to read aloud and share with children at bedtime. John Schoenherr tells the story through pictures beautifully. They could almost exist alone. Children will love this heartwarming story about a very special night.
The story is about a little girl and her fathering going owling one winter night. In search of the magnificent and elusive owl, they have to be silent and brave going deep into the dark and scary woods. The story says that words are not important when you go owling, you only need hope. This story depicts the special relationship of a child with her father.
This story reflects a theme that children will understand. Nearly every child has something that they share with their father. In this story their was no conversation between the father and daughter, but it was still a special moment in time that the two will cherish forever. This story will show to children that it is not the words that make a special memory, but it is being together that makes it so special.
The illustrations are truly exquisite. They are done in watercolor and they capture every detail of their journey. He uses space to convey a silent mood and to show the greatness and bigness of the woods. They add a important element to the story.
Owl Moon is a wonderful story, well deserving of the caldecott award. It will be enjoyed by the young and old alike.
Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks
1987 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Hey, Al is a book written by Arthur Yorinks and illustrated by Richard Egielski. Released by Farrar Press, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1987.
Book Review
"Paradise lost is sometimes heaven found" is the closing line in Hey, Al, a wonderful book that has a timeless moral for both kids and adults. Al is a janitor who is not happy with how is life is going. He lives in a room with his dog, Eddie, who is also not happy with his situation. One day a bird appears at the window promising to bring them to a better place, "no worries, no cares". Of course, something that sounds that good probably isn't.
This book is definitely an entertaining story. The pictures are colorful and very detailed. Kids will love looking at them and pointing out all the different birds and laugh at the silly transformation that Al and Eddie go through. I think they will also get the story, that what you have is usually better than what you lust for. Everyone, at some point in their life, dreams about something better. This book is a great reality check for us, giving a serious message in a kid's book.
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
1986 Caldecott Medal Winner
The Polar Express is a 1985 children's book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, a former professor at the Rhode Island School of Design. It was adapted as a Oscar-nominated motion-capture film in 2004.
The book is now widely considered to be a classic Christmas story for young children. It was praised for its detailed illustrations and calm, relaxing storyline. In 1986, it was awarded the Caldecott Medal for children's literature. The book is set partially in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the author's home town. It is published in both soft and hard-copies.
Book Review
"On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear ...." And so begins one the of the most beautiful stories of all time. Although I am now a senior in college, The Polar Express has remained the most valued and cherished book in my ever-expanding library. A childhood Christmas gift, Chris Van Allsburg's timeless masterpiece has become a fixture at our family gatherings each and every holiday season. Every member of the family, from the youngest to the oldest, appreciates it's simple but elegant story-telling style illustrated by the soft and soothing silhouettes of Van Allsburg's full-color art.
The Polar Express is the story of a young boy and his magical journey aboard a mythical train to the North Pole. The reader is taken along this incredible ride and rediscovers the true joy and pure spirit of a child at Christmas. Van Allsburg's beautiful illustrations become as important to the story as the words themselves. These life-like pictures encourage children of ALL ages to explore their own imaginations and to become active participants in the young boy's journey. In the end, the young boy has grown into an old man, but the spirit of Christmas still rings for him, "... as it does for all who truly believe." I hope you enjoy this book half as much as I do.
Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China is a book by Ed Young. Released by Philomel, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1990.
Book Review by Laura Harmon
Lon Po Po is an adaptation of Little Red Riding Hood from China. In Young's version the mother leaves her three children for the day, Shang, Tao, and Paotze, to visit their grandmother on her birthday. While the mother is gone a wolf, dressed as their grandmother, Po Po, comes to try to eat them. The oldest daughter Shang is clever and outsmarts the wolf. The relevance of this folk tale to the article Strong Women in Appalachian Folktales is the importance of the female protagonist.
A female protagonist in a folktale is a rarity. Male protagonists over shadow females in twentieth century tales. Shang is the female protagonist in Lon Po Po. Not only does she defeat the wolf but she outsmarts him as well. It is important that she is portrayed as the clever heroin so that contemporary children have more positive role models than the heroines in the best-known traditional fairytales (225). In Lon Po Po, the wolf does not fool Shang as little red riding hood was in the European tale. Shang realizes from the start that the wolf is trying to trick her. When she asks the wolf about his fur and his claws she is simultaneously planning a way to get rid of him. Appalachian folktales are tales that were adapted in America. Many made the female protagonist stronger than the previous European version. Ed Young readapted the tale of little red riding hood in the same way. In the original European version the wolf eats the grandmother. There are no women in this Chinese rendition that fall victim to the wolf.
Folktales inevitably change when retold by another culture. However, there are some similarities in the way that Appalachian folktales and Chinese folktales changed. They both highlight the strengths of female characters and give them an even bigger role than their original one.
Song and Dance Man by Karen Ackerman
1989 Caldecott Medal Winner
Song and Dance Man is the title of a 1988 book by Karen Ackerman and illustrated by Stephen Gammell. It won the 1989 Caldecott Medal. The plot deals with a grandfather who tells his grandchildren about his adventures on the stage.
Book Review
This delightful book written by Karen Ackerman depicts a fun and loving relationship between a grandfather and his grandchildren. The children are delighted with their grandfather's antics and his tales of a time long ago when he was young, dancing on the vaudeville stage. The book depicts the grandfather as an energetic and vivacious elderly person and a joy for his grandchildren. Young children will love the vibrant and colorful llustrations by Stephen Gammell which add a sense of excitement and reality to the story.
Note to teachers: This book can be used in a unit pertaining to family and would be an excellent source for teaching another area of diversity, the elderly.
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
1988 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Owl Moon is a 1987 children's picture book by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr. The book won many awards, most notably being the Caldecott Medal for its illustrations, and has appeared on the show Reading Rainbow. Owl Moon has been translated into more than a dozen foreign languages, including French, German, Chinese, and Korean. A song by Bruce O'Brien is about this book.
Yolen described the book as, "a positive family story. It's about a girl and her father. Usually stories of a little girl are with her mother. It is gentle yet adventurous, quiet yet full of sound".
Book Review by Kristen Arnold
Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen, is a wonderfully told story. It is a perfect story to read aloud and share with children at bedtime. John Schoenherr tells the story through pictures beautifully. They could almost exist alone. Children will love this heartwarming story about a very special night.
The story is about a little girl and her fathering going owling one winter night. In search of the magnificent and elusive owl, they have to be silent and brave going deep into the dark and scary woods. The story says that words are not important when you go owling, you only need hope. This story depicts the special relationship of a child with her father.
This story reflects a theme that children will understand. Nearly every child has something that they share with their father. In this story their was no conversation between the father and daughter, but it was still a special moment in time that the two will cherish forever. This story will show to children that it is not the words that make a special memory, but it is being together that makes it so special.
The illustrations are truly exquisite. They are done in watercolor and they capture every detail of their journey. He uses space to convey a silent mood and to show the greatness and bigness of the woods. They add a important element to the story.
Owl Moon is a wonderful story, well deserving of the caldecott award. It will be enjoyed by the young and old alike.
Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks
1987 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Hey, Al is a book written by Arthur Yorinks and illustrated by Richard Egielski. Released by Farrar Press, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1987.
Book Review
"Paradise lost is sometimes heaven found" is the closing line in Hey, Al, a wonderful book that has a timeless moral for both kids and adults. Al is a janitor who is not happy with how is life is going. He lives in a room with his dog, Eddie, who is also not happy with his situation. One day a bird appears at the window promising to bring them to a better place, "no worries, no cares". Of course, something that sounds that good probably isn't.
This book is definitely an entertaining story. The pictures are colorful and very detailed. Kids will love looking at them and pointing out all the different birds and laugh at the silly transformation that Al and Eddie go through. I think they will also get the story, that what you have is usually better than what you lust for. Everyone, at some point in their life, dreams about something better. This book is a great reality check for us, giving a serious message in a kid's book.
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
1986 Caldecott Medal Winner
The Polar Express is a 1985 children's book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, a former professor at the Rhode Island School of Design. It was adapted as a Oscar-nominated motion-capture film in 2004.
The book is now widely considered to be a classic Christmas story for young children. It was praised for its detailed illustrations and calm, relaxing storyline. In 1986, it was awarded the Caldecott Medal for children's literature. The book is set partially in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the author's home town. It is published in both soft and hard-copies.
Book Review
"On Christmas Eve, many years ago, I lay quietly in my bed. I did not rustle the sheets. I breathed slowly and silently. I was listening for a sound -- a sound a friend had told me I'd never hear ...." And so begins one the of the most beautiful stories of all time. Although I am now a senior in college, The Polar Express has remained the most valued and cherished book in my ever-expanding library. A childhood Christmas gift, Chris Van Allsburg's timeless masterpiece has become a fixture at our family gatherings each and every holiday season. Every member of the family, from the youngest to the oldest, appreciates it's simple but elegant story-telling style illustrated by the soft and soothing silhouettes of Van Allsburg's full-color art.
The Polar Express is the story of a young boy and his magical journey aboard a mythical train to the North Pole. The reader is taken along this incredible ride and rediscovers the true joy and pure spirit of a child at Christmas. Van Allsburg's beautiful illustrations become as important to the story as the words themselves. These life-like pictures encourage children of ALL ages to explore their own imaginations and to become active participants in the young boy's journey. In the end, the young boy has grown into an old man, but the spirit of Christmas still rings for him, "... as it does for all who truly believe." I hope you enjoy this book half as much as I do.
Saint George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges - 1985 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Saint George and the Dragon is a book written by Margaret Hodges and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman. Released by Little, Brown, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1985.
Book Review by Jack
My mom found this book at the bookstore and was enchanted by the incredibly detailed, illuminating illustrations. Being a fan of fantasy stories, she skimmed it in the bookstore and as Grammy was on a buying spree for her only grandchild, this book also was purchased.
Surprisingly for mom, I loved this book! I'm fascinated by the story, particularly the lamb and dwarf carrying food and the dragon's injured tail. I will sit quietly as it is read aloud, though I occasionally ask where the dragon is during the slow beginning. I am not alarmed by the violence (perhaps due to not understanding it fully?) though I clearly recognize that George "cut off his tail," and have suggested bandaids for it. I do get a little bored with all the marriage talk at the end, though.
Mom recommends this book, with the caveat that it is a little wordy for young readers and though trying to stay true to the story while keeping it brief, does not capture as much of the motivation/emotion behind the actions. In addition, there are some passages that could have been written with more fluid language that is just as or more vivid. Tired mom has tripped over some passages before.
She has now read this book at least daily for the past week and a half and is in search of other dragon books, hopefully with dragons on every page.
Saint George and the Dragon is a book written by Margaret Hodges and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman. Released by Little, Brown, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1985.
Book Review by Jack
My mom found this book at the bookstore and was enchanted by the incredibly detailed, illuminating illustrations. Being a fan of fantasy stories, she skimmed it in the bookstore and as Grammy was on a buying spree for her only grandchild, this book also was purchased.
Surprisingly for mom, I loved this book! I'm fascinated by the story, particularly the lamb and dwarf carrying food and the dragon's injured tail. I will sit quietly as it is read aloud, though I occasionally ask where the dragon is during the slow beginning. I am not alarmed by the violence (perhaps due to not understanding it fully?) though I clearly recognize that George "cut off his tail," and have suggested bandaids for it. I do get a little bored with all the marriage talk at the end, though.
Mom recommends this book, with the caveat that it is a little wordy for young readers and though trying to stay true to the story while keeping it brief, does not capture as much of the motivation/emotion behind the actions. In addition, there are some passages that could have been written with more fluid language that is just as or more vivid. Tired mom has tripped over some passages before.
She has now read this book at least daily for the past week and a half and is in search of other dragon books, hopefully with dragons on every page.
The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Blériot by Alice Provensen and Martin Provensen - 1984 Caldecott Medal Recipient
The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Blériot is a book by Alice Provensen and Martin Provensen. Released by Viking Press, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1984.
Book Review
As others have noted, it IS a quiet book, but my children (3rd grade, 2nd grade, and pre-K) enjoyed it very much (although my 3rd grader, looking over my shoulder, said it was just 3 stars because he isn't that interested in planes - ahem).
Anyway, I used this book as part of a short aviation unit study this summer after we came back from Nags Head - we studied the Wright Brothers, Amelia Earhart, and Louis Bleriot.
I absolutely love the illustrations in this book, the author uses a fairly muted palate, and we used butcher paper, various brown paints, and white paint applied with sponges and cotton balls to make our own plane-lost-in-the-clouds picture.
We also used the book to discuss persistence & passion (the Wright Brothers made 3 trips to Kitty Hawk before they were successful, but Louis Bleriot had - if memory serves me correctly, which admittedly it hasn't been doing lately - 8 or 9 "failures" before he was successful building his plane). We also discussed France, being an inventor, the English Channel & the Chunnel, and Roman Numbers.
I think the beautiful illustrations, combined with the book's encouraging and REAL LIFE message of learning from your mistakes and not giving up when you are trying to achieve your dreams, makes this book a worthwhile addition to any child's library. As the mother of a somewhat perfectionist daughter, I can't have too many books like this on my bookshelf.
Shadow by Marcia Brown
1983 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Shadow is a translation of the poem La Féticheuse by French writer Blaise Cendrars. The book was released by Scribner and illustrated by Marcia Brown. It was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1983, Brown's third honor.
Book Review by B. Ackley
In (...) I used to look at the large posters displayed in the school library showing the various Newberry and Caldecott Award winners. On the Caldecott poster the small picture of Marcia Brown's "shadow" always stood out from the other books. When we were asked to check out a book I was always dismayed to discover that "Shadow" was not available in our library. Having finally read it some 13+ years later the bold use of color and and word play make it as appealing now as it did on a poster in elementary school.
Marcia Brown has translated the poem from the french language and has used an African theme to illustrate some of the literal and more abstract ideas regarding shadows. Through the words and pictures we see the playfulness and darker aspects of shadows. The pictures are so fantastic and rich, truly a great way to introduce African culture to younger audiences.
I agree with other reviews that the illustrations of this book do have at times a darker, ominous look to them. While the illustrations brilliantly complement the text some younger children could be frightened by them. As with any book, preview the book first to make sure it is appropriate for your child.
Overall I was very impressed with "Shadow", the cover alone still a vivid memory from those days of staring at that Caldecott poster in (...). A beautiful picture book and one that truly deserves a proper look.
Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
1982 Caldecott Medal Winner
Jumanji is the title of a 1981 children's illustrated short story and fantasy story written and illustrated by the American author Chris Van Allsburg. It was made into a 1995 film of the same name. Both the book and the movie are about a magical board game that implements real animals and other jungle elements as the players are playing the game. The troubles which the players have to overcome appear in real life, not only in the board game. "Jumanji" is a combination of "jungle" and "magic".
Fritz, a bull terrier in all of Chris Van Allsburg's books, appears as a toy dog on wheels in the third illustration.
Book Review by Nadia
Jumanji is a great book! I am 23 years old now and I still remember the day my 2nd grade teacher read Jumanji to my class. I was hanging on her every word and the illustrations were absolutley amazing. This was in the year 1987 and up to that point I had never seen pictures so vividly and immaculately rendered. Jumanji was unlike any other book that I had read because it was fun, exciting, adventurous, and also eerie which added to the intrigue. I was very disappointed by the movie interpretation of it, because it's nothing like the real thing.
Fables is a book by Arnold Lobel. Released by Harper Collins, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1981. Fables takes stories using animals and organizes them from A to Z.
Book Review by Stacey Lynn
Fables is a collection of fables that the author made up himself. They aren't the traditional fables of the world, but they still all contain a moral lesson. Each story is about animal characters, which makes the stories very enchanting.
Each story is very short and is contained within the borders of one page each. This is a good quality for a short story book because a story can be told in a very short amount of time. The whole book does not have to be read in order for the reader to benefit from it. The meaning of every story is stated at the bottom of every page. This is an advantage to the reader because they do not have to read the entire story to figure out if they want to read that particular fable.
Each fable is accompanied by its own colorful illustration. The illustrations are large and cover the entire page opposite the fable that it belongs to. Some of the illustrations are rather humorous and get the reader's attention before they even begin reading the story.
This would be a good book to have in a younger aged classroom. The stories are short so the reader is not bogged down by a long drawn out story. They are also humorous and are sure to get a laugh out of any youngster.
Ox-Cart Man by Donald Hall and Barbara Cooney - 1980 Caldecott Medal Winner
Ox-Cart Man is the title of a 1979 book written by Donald Hall and illustrated by Barbara Cooney. It won the 1980 Caldecott Medal. The book deals with an 18th century farming family that uses an ox-cart to take their goods to market, where they make the money to buy the things they need.
Ox-Cart Man was originally published in an October 3, 1977 edition of The New Yorker as a Donald Hall poem. Hall revised the poem greatly to create the children's book and chose Barbara Cooney for its illustrations (Cooney was the illustrator of another Caldecott Medal-winning book, Chanticleer and the Fox.) The poem and book are cyclical.
This book was featured on a Season 2 episode of Reading Rainbow.
Book Review by SKC Teacher
The journey of a settler who packs up his cart with surplus that was grown, handmade, and raised on a farm in historical New England. The story takes the reader through what a family has to do to survive during this time period and what each part the family had in that survival. From a historical perspective an awesome book. With the love of history that I have on a personal note this story gives me clues to my own ancestors survival needs. I have two copies of this book one at home and one in my classroom.
Very detailed illustrations, very accurate information on the settler's way of life and need for trading or selling off goods that the family helped make. The portrayal of the family with no electricity and providing their own means of survival. The story tells us that the farmer travelled ten days to reach the village of Portsmouth. I would've like to know which direction he came from, whether he had to travel from the south, the north or the west of the village. I would've also like to have know what he saw and who he might have met along the way.
Classroom Activities I do with this book:
Math - Seasons, Sequencing, Money, Trading/Selling, Time Art - Draw the seasons, quilts, weaving, looms, broom making, Science - Make candles, grow a potato from a seed, make maple sugar.
Social Studies - 13 Colonies, Mapping Skills, Clothing, Occupations, Cooking
Reading - Write a sequel or pre-story to this book, illustrate one aspect of story or write about who he might have met along the way and which direction he came from.
The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Blériot is a book by Alice Provensen and Martin Provensen. Released by Viking Press, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1984.
Book Review
As others have noted, it IS a quiet book, but my children (3rd grade, 2nd grade, and pre-K) enjoyed it very much (although my 3rd grader, looking over my shoulder, said it was just 3 stars because he isn't that interested in planes - ahem).
Anyway, I used this book as part of a short aviation unit study this summer after we came back from Nags Head - we studied the Wright Brothers, Amelia Earhart, and Louis Bleriot.
I absolutely love the illustrations in this book, the author uses a fairly muted palate, and we used butcher paper, various brown paints, and white paint applied with sponges and cotton balls to make our own plane-lost-in-the-clouds picture.
We also used the book to discuss persistence & passion (the Wright Brothers made 3 trips to Kitty Hawk before they were successful, but Louis Bleriot had - if memory serves me correctly, which admittedly it hasn't been doing lately - 8 or 9 "failures" before he was successful building his plane). We also discussed France, being an inventor, the English Channel & the Chunnel, and Roman Numbers.
I think the beautiful illustrations, combined with the book's encouraging and REAL LIFE message of learning from your mistakes and not giving up when you are trying to achieve your dreams, makes this book a worthwhile addition to any child's library. As the mother of a somewhat perfectionist daughter, I can't have too many books like this on my bookshelf.
Shadow by Marcia Brown
1983 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Shadow is a translation of the poem La Féticheuse by French writer Blaise Cendrars. The book was released by Scribner and illustrated by Marcia Brown. It was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1983, Brown's third honor.
Book Review by B. Ackley
In (...) I used to look at the large posters displayed in the school library showing the various Newberry and Caldecott Award winners. On the Caldecott poster the small picture of Marcia Brown's "shadow" always stood out from the other books. When we were asked to check out a book I was always dismayed to discover that "Shadow" was not available in our library. Having finally read it some 13+ years later the bold use of color and and word play make it as appealing now as it did on a poster in elementary school.
Marcia Brown has translated the poem from the french language and has used an African theme to illustrate some of the literal and more abstract ideas regarding shadows. Through the words and pictures we see the playfulness and darker aspects of shadows. The pictures are so fantastic and rich, truly a great way to introduce African culture to younger audiences.
I agree with other reviews that the illustrations of this book do have at times a darker, ominous look to them. While the illustrations brilliantly complement the text some younger children could be frightened by them. As with any book, preview the book first to make sure it is appropriate for your child.
Overall I was very impressed with "Shadow", the cover alone still a vivid memory from those days of staring at that Caldecott poster in (...). A beautiful picture book and one that truly deserves a proper look.
Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
1982 Caldecott Medal Winner
Jumanji is the title of a 1981 children's illustrated short story and fantasy story written and illustrated by the American author Chris Van Allsburg. It was made into a 1995 film of the same name. Both the book and the movie are about a magical board game that implements real animals and other jungle elements as the players are playing the game. The troubles which the players have to overcome appear in real life, not only in the board game. "Jumanji" is a combination of "jungle" and "magic".
Fritz, a bull terrier in all of Chris Van Allsburg's books, appears as a toy dog on wheels in the third illustration.
Book Review by Nadia
Jumanji is a great book! I am 23 years old now and I still remember the day my 2nd grade teacher read Jumanji to my class. I was hanging on her every word and the illustrations were absolutley amazing. This was in the year 1987 and up to that point I had never seen pictures so vividly and immaculately rendered. Jumanji was unlike any other book that I had read because it was fun, exciting, adventurous, and also eerie which added to the intrigue. I was very disappointed by the movie interpretation of it, because it's nothing like the real thing.
Fables by Arnold Lobel
1981 Caldecott Medal Recipient
Fables is a book by Arnold Lobel. Released by Harper Collins, it was the recipient of the Caldecott Medal for illustration in 1981. Fables takes stories using animals and organizes them from A to Z.
Book Review by Stacey Lynn
Fables is a collection of fables that the author made up himself. They aren't the traditional fables of the world, but they still all contain a moral lesson. Each story is about animal characters, which makes the stories very enchanting.
Each story is very short and is contained within the borders of one page each. This is a good quality for a short story book because a story can be told in a very short amount of time. The whole book does not have to be read in order for the reader to benefit from it. The meaning of every story is stated at the bottom of every page. This is an advantage to the reader because they do not have to read the entire story to figure out if they want to read that particular fable.
Each fable is accompanied by its own colorful illustration. The illustrations are large and cover the entire page opposite the fable that it belongs to. Some of the illustrations are rather humorous and get the reader's attention before they even begin reading the story.
This would be a good book to have in a younger aged classroom. The stories are short so the reader is not bogged down by a long drawn out story. They are also humorous and are sure to get a laugh out of any youngster.
Ox-Cart Man by Donald Hall and Barbara Cooney - 1980 Caldecott Medal Winner
Ox-Cart Man is the title of a 1979 book written by Donald Hall and illustrated by Barbara Cooney. It won the 1980 Caldecott Medal. The book deals with an 18th century farming family that uses an ox-cart to take their goods to market, where they make the money to buy the things they need.
Ox-Cart Man was originally published in an October 3, 1977 edition of The New Yorker as a Donald Hall poem. Hall revised the poem greatly to create the children's book and chose Barbara Cooney for its illustrations (Cooney was the illustrator of another Caldecott Medal-winning book, Chanticleer and the Fox.) The poem and book are cyclical.
This book was featured on a Season 2 episode of Reading Rainbow.
Book Review by SKC Teacher
The journey of a settler who packs up his cart with surplus that was grown, handmade, and raised on a farm in historical New England. The story takes the reader through what a family has to do to survive during this time period and what each part the family had in that survival. From a historical perspective an awesome book. With the love of history that I have on a personal note this story gives me clues to my own ancestors survival needs. I have two copies of this book one at home and one in my classroom.
Very detailed illustrations, very accurate information on the settler's way of life and need for trading or selling off goods that the family helped make. The portrayal of the family with no electricity and providing their own means of survival. The story tells us that the farmer travelled ten days to reach the village of Portsmouth. I would've like to know which direction he came from, whether he had to travel from the south, the north or the west of the village. I would've also like to have know what he saw and who he might have met along the way.
Classroom Activities I do with this book:
Math - Seasons, Sequencing, Money, Trading/Selling, Time Art - Draw the seasons, quilts, weaving, looms, broom making, Science - Make candles, grow a potato from a seed, make maple sugar.
Social Studies - 13 Colonies, Mapping Skills, Clothing, Occupations, Cooking
Reading - Write a sequel or pre-story to this book, illustrate one aspect of story or write about who he might have met along the way and which direction he came from.
No comments:
Post a Comment