A Nigerian folktale becomes especially appealing through Olaleye’s onomatopoetic wordplay and Grifalconi’s clever use of marbling to convey the essence of the elements—wind, fire, and rain. After failing to resolve their argument over who is the greatest, Wind, Fire, and Rain agree to battle on the rainfield to see who will be the last standing. Wind puts on quite a display, until Fire turns the world into a firestorm rushing in all directions. Wind’s blowing only makes Fire “bigger and stronger!” It falls to Rain to pour water on Fire’s parade and claim the prize: “The gentlest is the greatest.” Olaleye’s text has a lovely musicality about it, and Grifalconi’s collages swirl with life and color. Exquisite. (Picture book. 4-9)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-590-48363-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Blue Sky/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1999
A polished, poignant retelling of a familiar legend and its worthy moral, that some things in life are worth more than their weight in gold. Greed drives King Midas when a mysterious stranger decides to grant his wish for a golden touch; too late the king realizes that everything he touches—roses, bed sheets, food, coffee, his beloved daughter—turns to cold yellow metal. By the time the stranger reappears, Midas is more than ready to return his gift. Rayyan’s illustrations create a rich, busy background for the events; harpies, sphinxes, and satyrs scurry around, while careful observers will spot Icarus plunging toward the earth at the same moment that Midas transforms his daughter, Marygold. Such wonderful details bind the art and the text with perfect alacrity, ensuring that this book will not be long on the shelves. (Picture book/folkore. 5-9)
Pub Date: March 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1423-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1999
Another woman-turned-warrior tale, this time set in Ireland. Brave adventurer Margaret longs to “learn what lay beyond the wide sea,” and seizes her first opportunity when the handsome son of a king, Simon, stumbles onto her farm. She mightily convinces him to take her aboard, and is soon felling sea serpents. This prefaces the real monster she must slay—giant who rendered her true love lifeless with the stroke of a club—but she is imprisoned by a sorceress hag who tells her that only the “champion” whose finger fits a silver ring can free the sword that will kill the giant. Margaret slips the ring on, exclaiming, “What fools we are for thinking it must be a man who slays that great, dirty giant!” With giant slain and true love returned from the dead, a wedding ensues. This story has it all: high seas, sorcery, sea serpents, the slaying of dragons, with a Maureen O’Hara—like spitfire at the heart of it all. San Souci conjures up large events and sweeps of time with a minimum of words. Comport casts Margaret as a long-necked, pale-skinned beauty with waves of red hair as fiery as her spirit. (Picture book/folklore. 5-9)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-81072-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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