Twenty-two more British fairy tales, retold by a master storyteller noted for his scrupulous rendering and poetic use of dialects. Most of these brief tales are variants of the familiar, recognizable for their plots if not for their titles. What makes them outstanding is Garner's uncanny ear for the mot juste and the telling phrase, his command of nuance and humor. Unlike his Stone Book Quartet; which was heavy going for those unversed in British dialect, these should be perfectly clear to the youngest listeners. Attractively illustrated with a variety of miniature silhouettes, detailed (and often humorous) pen drawings and dramatic full-page paintings, the generous format recalls Rackham's Fairy Tales. A fine source for storytelling or reading aloud; a worthy companion to Joseph Jacobs' standard versions.
Pub Date: Oct. 24, 1986
ISBN: 0007127901
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1986
This story covers the few days preceding the much-anticipated Midnight Zombie Walk, when Stink and company will take to the...
An all-zombie-all-the-time zombiefest, featuring a bunch of grade-school kids, including protagonist Stink and his happy comrades.
This story covers the few days preceding the much-anticipated Midnight Zombie Walk, when Stink and company will take to the streets in the time-honored stiff-armed, stiff-legged fashion. McDonald signals her intent on page one: “Stink and Webster were playing Attack of the Knitting Needle Zombies when Fred Zombie’s eye fell off and rolled across the floor.” The farce is as broad as the Atlantic, with enough spookiness just below the surface to provide the all-important shivers. Accompanied by Reynolds’ drawings—dozens of scene-setting gems with good, creepy living dead—McDonald shapes chapters around zombie motifs: making zombie costumes, eating zombie fare at school, reading zombie books each other to reach the one-million-minutes-of-reading challenge. When the zombie walk happens, it delivers solid zombie awfulness. McDonald’s feel-good tone is deeply encouraging for readers to get up and do this for themselves because it looks like so much darned fun, while the sub-message—that reading grows “strong hearts and minds,” as well as teeth and bones—is enough of a vital interest to the story line to be taken at face value.Pub Date: March 13, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5692-8
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This companion piece to the other fairy tales Marcia Brown has interpreted (see Puss In Boots, 1952, p. 548 and others) has the smoothness of a good translation and a unique charm to her feathery light pictures. The pictures have been done in sunset colors and the spreads on each page as they illustrate the story have the cumulative effect of soft cloud banks. Gentle.
Pub Date: June 15, 1954
ISBN: 0684126761
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1954
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