Traditional Literature Module 2 Book Review

 Traditional Literature Module 2 Book Review

Book Review #1 There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick! by Lucille Colandro

  1. Bibliographic Data:

Colandro, Lucille. "There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick!". Lee, Jared. Scholastic Inc. New York. ISBN 978-0-545-16181-7

2. Plot Summary:

In this fictional story, an old lady swallows a whole, live chick. As the story continues, she eats other things such as an egg, a basket, some straw, and some candy. These items ultimately make up an Easter basket, which she ends up spitting out of her stomach and lands in front of the Easter Bunny.

3. Critical Analysis:

This book has a lot of repetition and some rhyming, which helps with the establishment of sounds and word association. The book has simple, colorful pictures that help the readers focus on the words and the main items highlighted in each page. The pictures are big and take up most of the page, which is good for younger kids. Also, the repetition of the same sentences helps students stick with the meaning of the story, helping them understand what they're reading a bit better. She repeats the same sentences throughout the book, building more on each one. Then, at the end, the main word EASTER BUNNY and HAPPY EASTER, is the focus of the page.

4. Review Excerpt:

Good Reads Review: A wacky new Easter version of the classic "There Was an Old Lady" song!

This time, the hungry old lady swallows a chick, some straw, an egg, some candy, a basket, and a bow!

And just as she's hopping and skipping along, who should she meet but the Easter Bunny! Watch what happens when she trips, with amazing results!

With rhyming text and funny illustrations, this lively version of a classic song will appeal to young readers with every turn of the page -- a fun story for Easter!

5. Connections:

Students are able to make connections through the rhyming and the repetition, but mostly connect with the items that are being highlighted in the story. They can each share a story of their interaction with these items to help give them exposure to these everyday tools. Lastly, and most importantly, they're able to connect with the holiday part of the story: Easter. Here we can discuss our Easter traditions and what we each do to celebrate. If students don't this is a good time to expose them to different cultures and traditions.

Book Review #2 Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback

 1. Bibliographic Data:

Taback, Simms. "Joseph Had a Little Overcoat." The Penguin Group. 1999. ISBN 0-670-87855-3

 2. Plot Summary:

In this story, we follow a man, Joseph, who had an overcoat, but it became old and worn out. He decided to upcycle the overcoat and reused that it to make a jacket, then a vest, then a scarf, then a tie, then a handkerchief, and finally a button. All of these ways of reusing the overcoat resulted in a super helpful methods for him. He finds beautiful ways to make something out of what others might consider useless or trash. At the end of the story, when he thinks he has nothing left, not even the button, he writes a story about his experience in reusing the overcoat until it was completely gone! By writing this story, he proves that there's always a way to make something out of "nothing."

3. Critical Analysis:

This is a beautiful story for older elementary children and up because even though the sentences are short and easy to read, the concept of the story might be a bit hard to understand to super young children. As for the pages of the book, they have a cut-out so that it fits the type of article of clothing they are talking about in the story. It helps students visualize the way the overcoat changes size and shape to turn into other items. This story is also repetitive in the words and sentences that are used to help develop a pattern for better understanding in the children's' minds. 

4. Review Excerpt:

Publisher's Weekly: A flip of the page allows children to peek through to subsequent spreads as Joseph's tailoring produces items of decreasing size. The author puts a droll spin on his narrative when Joseph loses the last remnant of the coat--a button--and decides to make a book about it. ""Which shows... you can always make something out of nothing,"" writes Taback, who wryly slips himself into his story by depicting Joseph creating a dummy for the book that readers are holding. Still, it's the bustling mixed-media artwork, highlighted by the strategically placed die-cuts, that steals the show. Taback works into his folk art a menagerie of wide-eyed animals witnessing the overcoat's transformation, miniature photographs superimposed on paintings and some clever asides reproduced in small print

5: Connections:

Students are able to learn about recycling and upcycling, which will be inclusive of those whose parents thrift clothes or buy thrifted clothes. It helps students realize that it can be beautiful to create something yourself and give something that might be considered "trash" a better use. It highlights the importance of not just disregarding something because it's old and worn out, but rather give something a new meaning.

Book Review #3 The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

1. Bibliography:

Wiesner, David. "The Three Pigs." New York, New York. Clarion Books a Houghton Mifflin Company. 2001. ISBN 0-618-00701-6

 

2. Plot Summary:

In the story, it starts off by reading as if it was the original story of the three little pigs: the wolf comes knocking at the pigs' homes one by one. First he goes to the pig that build the straw house, and he blows it down and eats the pig but he's able to escape! The second house is made of sticks, which he also blows down and the pig also gets away with the help of the other pig that escaped! However, when it gets to the part of the brick house, the pigs are able to escape the book entirely and remove the pages of the story to escape to new stories. Through these new stories, they meet other characters of traditional, popular folktales. Ultimately, they are able to change their setting and change their story. Lastly, they make it back to the 

3. Critical Analysis:

The book had long sentences and a lot of paragraphs. Although it was interactive, it was a very unconventional book because the pigs are interacting with the book by removing the pages and going to a new story to escape the wolf. When they change the story, the book changes the font and changes the setting. Within the book, there are a lot of other traditional folktale references. This was a bit weird or different because it had multiple stories in one. might be hard for some to grasp the concept of changing the story. I personally had to reread the last part a few times to be sure I understood what happened. There were some pages with no words, just pictures so it was up to the reader to piece together what was occurring. This part would be more for older elementary students, maybe not beginner readers.

4. Review Excerpt:

Kirkus Reviews: The three pigs (illustrated in their new world in a more three-dimensional style and with speech balloons) take off on a postmodern adventure via a paper airplane folded from the discarded pages of the traditional tale. They sail through several spreads of white space and crash-land in a surreal world of picture-book pages, where they befriend the cat from “Hey, Diddle Diddle” and a charming dragon that needs to escape with his cherished golden rose from a pursuing prince. The pigs, cat, and dragon pick up the pages of the original story and return to that flat, conventional world, concluding with a satisfying bowl of dragon-breath-broiled soup in their safe, sturdy brick house. The pigs have braved the new world and returned with their treasure: the cat for company and fiddle music, the dragon’s golden rose for beauty, and the dragon himself for warmth and protection from the wolf, who is glimpsed through the window, sitting powerlessly in the distance.

On the last few pages, the final words of the text break apart, sending letters drifting down into the illustrations to show us that once we have ventured out into the wider world, our stories never stay the same. (Picture book. 5-9)

5. Connections:

Students are able to connect to the traditional story of the three little pigs, but have a new input and perspective on it. Through the mentioning of the other traditional folktales, they might make connections or at least be intrigued to read the others and have something to look forward to reading. 

Book Review #4 Just In Case by Yuyi Morales

1. Bibliography:

Morales, Yuyi. "Just in Case." Neal Porter Book Roaring Brook Press. 2008. ISBN-10: 1-59643-329-9

2. Plot Summary:

The story is of Senor Calavera who is excited to attend Grandma Beetle's birthday! As he prepares to head out to her birthday party, he runs into Zelmiro the Ghost from the grave who asks him what gift he's taking for her. Senor Calavera decides he has plenty of time to stop for a gift, so he goes through a lot of objects, one item for every letter of the alphabet. As he keeps getting more and more gifts, he realizes he has run out of time and might be late for the party so he rushes downhill with ALL his gifts; however, he falls off the bike and loses all his gifts. Without time to pick them up, he makes the decision that the best gift of all would actually be to take Zelmiro the Ghost to visit Grandma Beetle. They make it in time for the party to cut the cake, and everyone is happy to see his family.

3. Critical Analysis:

The thematic colors of Día De Los Muertos are all throughout the book, along with some glittery and shiny items and letters to accentuate certain items. The book has quite a few heaving paragraphs. There are also alphabet letters that are capitalized for emphasis. What was interesting is that the items that begin with each letter of the alphabet are both English and Spanish. The code switching of both languages makes for beautiful story in which students can either feel represented or learn Spanish. There is a repetition of some phrases that help center the story around the theme of getting the perfect present for her friend. This book is perfect for students to learn a language or practice the alphabet in both languages.

4. Review Excerpt:

Kirkus Reviews Even better, if possible, than its predecessor, Just A Minute! (2003), this original trickster tale pitches Señor Calavera (i.e., Death—rendered as a skeleton topped by a hilariously expressive sugar skull) into a frantic hunt for birthday presents for his elderly friend Grandma Beetle. Enter Zelmiro the ghost, a white-haired gent with twinkling eyes, who helpfully suggests that “the best present to give a friend is the thing she would love the most.” But what could that be? Bigotes (mustaches), because she has none? Un Chiflido (whistle) trapped in a bag? Fretting about how much of the party he’s missing, Señor Calavera collects something for every letter of the Spanish alphabet from Acordeón to Yerbabuena—but then an accident leaves him with nothing…or does it? Richly hued and filled with action, the illustrations capture the tale’s humor and Latin flavor perfectly, leading on to an entirely logical, hilarious and heartwarming surprise at the end. As gifted an artist as she is a storyteller, Morales is in top form here. (Picture book. 6-9)

5. Connections:

Students are able to connect to the Hispanic culture through the language and the items such as the loteria, the escalera, the llave, the mono, the papalote, and the titere, etc. It also helps connect students with their birthday celebrations that they do with their families. It raises the topic of traditions and of spending quality time with family, and how that is the ultimate best gift.