In this great idea for a collection, the selection of stories included is stellar and the watercolor illustrations are charming. There are tales about a runaway pancake, a singing pumpkin, a caterpillar that is feared as a mighty threat, explanations about why tortoises no longer have a smooth shell and why monkeys live in trees, and 15 others. Each tale, many of which can be found in picture book editions or in other collections, seems sillier than the last and features absurd situations, characters that lack even the most basic common sense, or ridiculous outcomes. Nevertheless, despite the potential for a wonderful collection, Sierra’s (Monster Goose, 2001, etc.) retellings, in general, are static and bland and in some cases simply confusing. Noteworthy is the abundance of rhyming words, repetitious phrases, and clever tricksters. More sparkles come with literary allusions to other classic folk stories or when the tale itself is a new one to the reader’s repertoire of stories. Young readers will enjoy repeating the codas, a traditional rhyming phrase meant to open or to bring a tale to a close. However, these positive elements are not enough to redeem the collection, which as a whole remains an additional purchase. (Folklore. 6-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2002
ISBN: 0-375-80609-1
Page Count: 90
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2002
Keena Ford’s second-grade class is taking a field trip to the United States Capitol. This good-hearted girl works hard to behave, but her impulsive decisions have a way of backfiring, no matter how hard she tries to do the right thing. In this second book in a series, Keena cuts off one of her braids and later causes a congressman to fall down the stairs. The first-person journal format is a stretch—most second graders can barely write, let alone tell every detail of three days of her life. Children will wonder how Keena can cut one of her “two thick braids” all the way off by pretend-snipping in the air. They will be further confused because the cover art clearly shows Keena with a completely different hairdo on the field trip than the one described. Though a strong African-American heroine is most welcome in chapter books and Keena and her family are likable and realistic, this series needs more polish before Keena writes about her next month in school. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: July 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3264-3
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your dreads! Isadora once again plies her hand using colorful, textured collages to depict her fourth fairy tale relocated to Africa. The narrative follows the basic story line: Taken by an evil sorceress at birth, Rapunzel is imprisoned in a tower; Rapunzel and the prince “get married” in the tower and she gets pregnant. The sorceress cuts off Rapunzel’s hair and tricks the prince, who throws himself from the tower and is blinded by thorns. The terse ending states: “The prince led Rapunzel and their twins to his kingdom, where they were received with great joy and lived happily every after.” Facial features, clothing, dreadlocks, vultures and the prince riding a zebra convey a generic African setting, but at times, the mixture of patterns and textures obfuscates the scenes. The textile and grain characteristic of the hewn art lacks the elegant romance of Zelinksy’s Caldecott version. Not a first purchase, but useful in comparing renditions to incorporate a multicultural aspect. (Picture book/fairy tale. 6-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-399-24772-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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