St. Romain, in her first published work, shows that she is a master storyteller with this Native American legend from Louisiana. During a flood, a woman and her children seek refuge in the giant cypress trees of the bayou. High in the branches the three cling together for warmth as night arrives and the moon comes out. Fearing that they will freeze to death, the woman implores the moon to help them, and she does. By drawing clouds near her and weaving all night, the moon fashions the most fragile of blankets with which to cover the family and keeps them warm until the flood finally recedes and the family is able to go home. Over the years, the moon’s blanket is taken to other locations and becomes known as Spanish moss. No documentation is given for Waites’s depiction of furry-looking garments and shoes worn by each of the family members or for the palmetto hut depicted as round, but without the willow or cypress poles normally thought to have supported the rounded roof of palmetto fronds and grass rope. While this is a straightforward telling that will engage the reader over and over again, the watercolor illustrations, while adequate, are not of the same stellar quality. An optional purchase for most libraries. (Picture book/folktale. 5-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 2003
ISBN: 1-56554-922-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Pelican
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2003
Sloat collaborates with Huffman, a Yu’pik storyteller, to infuse a traditional “origins” tale with the joy of creating. Hearing the old women of her village grumble that they have only tasteless crowberries for the fall feast’s akutaq—described as “Eskimo ice cream,” though the recipe at the end includes mixing in shredded fish and lard—young Anana carefully fashions three dolls, then sings and dances them to life. Away they bound, to cover the hills with cranberries, blueberries, and salmonberries. Sloat dresses her smiling figures in mixes of furs and brightly patterned garb, and sends them tumbling exuberantly through grassy tundra scenes as wildlife large and small gathers to look on. Despite obtrusively inserted pronunciations for Yu’pik words in the text, young readers will be captivated by the action, and by Anana’s infectious delight. (Picture book/folktale. 6-8)
Pub Date: June 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-88240-575-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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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