The Three Horrid Little Pigs by Liz Pichon (who is very nice)

Bibliographic Data for

The Three Horrid Little Pigs:

Author: Liz Pichon

Publisher: Little Tiger Press

Publication date: 2010

Place of Publication: Wilton, CT

ISBN: 13: 978-1-58925-423-7

ISBN-10: 1-58925-423-6

The three little pigs are back but this time our pink pals are "pesky" and rather pugnacious! After their mother throws them out of the house, the pigs seek to make it on their own with as little effort as possible. Along the way they meet a wolf, as expected, but this time the wolf is the good guy and the pigs are the ones threatening to do the huffing and puffing. In the end, the wolf and the pigs become friends (even roommates) and the pigs actually learn how to take care of their responsibilities...quite a twist from the traditional version of this well known tale.

In a typical town (green grass, blue skies, trees) with typical tools (straw, twigs, bricks), the not-so-typical occurs. Author and illustrator, Liz Pichon, has succeeded in twisting a, once, monotonous moral into an everyday lesson adorned with colorful characters. Cleverly placed text (i.e. wee wee weeeeee in the shape of a pig tail) among bright cartoon illustrations serve as amusing additions to this feel good plot. The "sweetest, loveliest wolf ever" adds a heart warming touch every time he offers a helping hand. From "Once upon a time" to "They all lived happily ever after" this fresh fairy tale is definitely worth reading.

"Several twists on “The Three Little Pigs” are currently in print, but even in this crowded field, The Three Horrid Little Pigs will hold its own" (Deborah Steinig, Children's Literature 2010).

Related Materials: Liz Pichon's own interactive website: http://www.lizpichon.co.uk/home.htm

THERE WAS AN OLD LADY WHO SWALLOWED A FLY by Simms Taback

Full Bibliographic Data:

Publisher: Penguin Group

Date of Publication: 1997

ISBN: 0-670-86939-2

Summary: “There was an old lady”… and she sure was crazy! This timeless poem is in full swing as Simms Taback portrays an old woman who swallows a fly (I don’t know why!). As attempts to swallow various other creatures are made in order to get rid of the original intruder the old lady discovers that her plan may not have been well thought out. Readers observe as this silly strategy backfires and leaves this poor protagonist big as a house and dead as a door nail.

Review: Though, potentially, a somewhat frightening story to some young readers, Simms Taback manages to produce a piece both humorous and lively. With brilliant colors and superb details, Taback gives his young readers something to talk about. As the frazzled “old lady” with blood shot eyes swallows the fly, then the spider, then the bird, then the cat, then the dog, then the cow, and eventually the horse, our curious readers are able to peek inside her stomach at the contents listed. This aspect makes this beloved tale even more entertaining than it already was. In addition to the primary focus, Taback provides a number of peripheral pleasures including a recipe for spider’s soup, outrageous headlines, and bubbled comments from the above mentioned creatures who are observing this episode and responding in comical rhyme. Taback’s use of color, humor, and child-like depiction has given this narrative the imagery it deserves.

Awards: Winner of the Caldecott Honor Award, The Old Lady who Swallowed a Fly as presented by Simms Taback “is really a splendid notion, and I can’t imagine how it could have been better carried out” (Gahan Wilson , New York Times 1997).

Related Materials: The official Site of Simms Taback: http://www.simmstaback.com/This_Is_The_Official_Simms_Taback_Site.html

Ladder to the Moon - Reviewed

Full Bibliographic Data:

Title: Ladder to the Moon

Author: Maya Soetoro-NG

ISBN: 978-0-7636-4570-0

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Publication date: 02/2011

Place of Publication: Somerville, MA

In Ladder to the Moon, by Maya Soetoro-NG, A young girl wishes she could have known the grandmother whose hands she's told she has. As she lay in bed staring out the window, and imagining the woman she never met, a golden ladder appears and with it arrives "Grandma Annie". From here we are taken on a grand adventure as old Annie and young Suhaila grow to "know each other completely" through smiles and songs. Suhaila gains a broader perspective on the world she lives in as she views it from the moon with her angelic grandmother as her guide. The two generations work synchronously to help those who are suffering from various circumstances back on Earth. Upon returning home Suhaila knows "more than she had known before" including her dear "Grandma Annie".

Ladder to the Moon is the place where true folktales begin. In an effort to unite a deceased grandmother with her granddaughter, Maya Soetoro-NG has woven together a magical adventure which binds the ordinary with the extraordinary. Alongside a grandmother who can only be described as safe, Suhaila discovers the importance of family, courage, service and home. Soetoro has succeeded in creating a tale which will provide those who read it with a sense of knowing Grandma Annie but more importantly they will know the values Anne Dunham held dear.

Yuyi Morales produces images that glean with mysticism and invoke delight. Each page is rich with calming colors and multiple cultural layers. Various backgrounds are portrayed through the thoughtful drawings of timeless traits. Morales draws the reader in immediately with a luring image a "full, soft, and curious" moon, then whisks them off for a wild ride on shimmering strokes and intentional images, all which serve effortlessly to engage the reader as if they have a discovered a secret.

With starred reviews from both Booklist and Publisher's Weekly, Ladder to the Moon is "a vision of divine love, a love incarnated in a warm, round, brown-skinned grandmother...." (Publisher's Weekly, 2011).

Book Review - Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave

Bibliographic Data for Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave

Author: Laban Carrick Hill

Illustrator: Bryan Collier

Publisher: Little, Brown And Company

Publication Date: September, 2010

Place of Publication: New York, NY

ISBN: 978-0-316-10731-0

Dave the Potter was a slave in the U.S. during the 1800's. Not only did Dave know how to turn clay into works of art but he also had a gift for writing poetry which he would leave on his pottery along with a date. This sort of practice was nearly unheard of from the slave community. Hill spins a tale of Dave working on his creations just as he was likely to have done. From the description of how dirt turns to clay to a "completely hardened" glazed jar, Hill carries the reader through the artistic process this former slave, surely, took great pleasure in time and again.

Hill's poetic narrative invites us to enter, what might have been, the only place in Dave's life he experienced freedom. Poignant descriptions and lifelike illustrations draw the reader in as Dave creates art from the earth. Step by step, Hill methodically entrances those who engage with Dave's story without their knowing. Only when the clay dries, and Dave's signature and verse have been applied to the finshed product, does the observer release the breath they didn't know they were holding. Hill's ability to convey the beauty of this man's life juxtaposed with the injustice he endured daily is truly touching. Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave is a story that will calm its' audience with a soft rhythm and warm hues. The reader will look up from the last page ready to know more about the potter from South Carolina.

Winner of the Caldecott and Coretta Scott King awards, Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet Slave is "an accomplished, visually stunning homage to an important African-American artist" (Kirkus Reviews, August 2010).

To learn more about Dave, visit the following websites:

http://www.usca.edu/aasc/davepotter.htm

http://leonardtodd.com/

Book Review - Millions of Cats By Wanda Gag

Bibliographic data for Millions of Cats

Title: Millions of Cats

Author: Wanda Gag

ISBN: 978-0-399-23315-9

Publisher: G.P Putnam's Sons

Publication date: 01 June 1956

Place of Publication: New York, NY

A quirky couple, consisting of a doting husband and his lonely wife, are sure that acquiring a feline family member will bring the companionship they have been seeking. As the husband sets out to make this happen, he stumbles upon "hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats"! Unable to decide on the "prettiest" puss, he takes all his furry friends back home to his waiting wife only to discover that beauty is truly within; and the one cat he never noticed, with time and some much needed love, becomes the "prettiest" cat he or his wife could have ever hoped for.

This outrageous tale set in a rural landscape tells a rhythmic story of love, old and new, while following a mess of cats through the countryside. Stark sketches allow the reader to utilize imagination while understanding that simplicity is a constant presence in this protest against superficiality.

Winner of the Newberry Award, "Millions of Cats is considered to be the first modern picture book, and one still known by many children today" (CCBC, 2009).

Other titles you may be interested in by Wanda Gag include:

ABC Bunny (Newberry Award Winner), Snow White (Caldecott Award Winner), & Nothing at All (Caldecott Award Winner)