Traditional Tales: Mightier Than the Sword: World Folktales for Strong Boys

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Yolen, Jane. 2003. Mightier Than the Sword: World Folktales for Strong Boys. Illus. by Raul Colón. NY: Harcourt Books. ISBN: 0152163913.

*Winner of the 2003 Aesop Prize*

BOOK REVIEW
Dedicated to her sons and grandsons, Yolen has collected from around the world fourteen diverse tales that include a pure-hearted hero, excitement, magic, trickery, and humor. Coming from countries like China, Germany, Norway, Burma, Ireland, Hungary, and Israel, each tale presents a story of a hero who overcomes his problems not with force but with the virtues of intelligence and courage and even a bit of imagination. Several of the stories may be familiar to readers, like China’s “The Magic Brocade,” Germany’s “The Deveil with the Three Golden Hairs” (a Grimm tale) and the African American tale of the “Knee-High Man” but there are many new ones like Afghanistan’s “Hired Hands” and “The Young Man Protected by the River” from Angola that are just as exciting to read. For each story there is a full-page pen and ink crosshatch illustration (created by Raul Colón) that presents a moment in the narrative and accurately shows the different cultures and time periods that each tale is set in. At the end of the book Yolen provides information on the origins of each tale and how she has combined them to create her own story and a bibliography of other variants for further reading. This collection of virtuous stories is an excellent book for boys to read and, as stated in the letter from the author’s sons and grandsons in the back, for girls to enjoy too.

CONNECTIONS
*Read Yolen’s companion book Not One Damsel in Distress: World Folktales for Strong Girls.
*Have fun reading and doing activities from Conn and Hal Iggulden’s The Dangerous Book for Boys and, for girl readers especially, The Daring book for Girls by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowirz.

Traditional Tales: Noah's Ark

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ray, Jane. 1990. Noah’s Ark. NY: Dutton Children’s Book. ISBN: 0525446532.

BOOK REVIEW
Using the text straight from the book of Genesis, Noah’s Ark presents the story of Noah building an ark in which his family and all the animals that walk the earth and the fowl in the sky will live in safety as God floods the earth to destroy the wickedness of man. After forty days and forty nights Noah sends out a dove in search of land, and upon the second try the dove returns with a fresh olive branch – a sign that the waters have subsided and there was land. In her traditional folk art style, Ray’s watercolor illustrations fill the pages the upper part of the book and frame the biblical narrative with bands of quilt-like designs and animals at the bottom. With flat perspective of the naïve art, the geometric shapes, human and animal figures and the detailed abundance of the earth after the waters recede exude a delightfully fresh and colorful story of life renewed. Though the text has been abridged to create a smoother story line, it is through the detailed illustrations that this famous biblical tale will capture the attention of young readers for a lifetime.

CONNECTION *Read other books about Noah and his ark: On Noah’s Ark by Jan Brett, Noah’s Ark by Jerry Pinkney, Noah’s Ark by Peter Spier, and Noah’s Ark by Rein Poorvliet.

Traditional Tales: The Legend of Saint Nicholas

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Demi. 2003. The Legend of Saint Nicholas. NY: Margaret K. McElderry Books. ISBN: 0689846819.

BOOK REVIEW
Around the year A.D. 280 in what is now present-day Turkey a boy named Nicholas was born to Christian parents. From his first day of life when he stood up in his bath and prayed to God to day that he felt his spirit being drawn to Heaven, Nicholas lived a pious life and through his good and miraculous deeds towards children, seafaring men, and many others he became the St. Nicholas that many know to this day and associate with the famous jolly old man himself – Santa Claus. In this well-researched picture-book-biography, Demi presents the life of the saint through the miraculous events he performed and the history of how he came to be connected to the Christmas holiday through the concise narrative. The rich complementing illustrations are highly reminiscent of the Byzantine illuminated artwork (very befitting for the subject) with accents of gild and has hints of modern additions like the marbleized patterns seen on the clothing and the traditional red and white stocking. With the inclusion of the Prayer of St. Nicholas and the Beatitudes, this book presents the interesting record of this important religious figure to all to learn and enjoy from.

CONNECTIONS:
*Read more about St. Nicholas with books like The Real Santa Claus: Legend of Saint Nicholas by Marianna Mayer.
*Read other historical figure books by Demi: Mother Teresa and Ghandi
*Read other books about religious figures from around the world by Demi: Jesus, Mary, Buddha, and Muhammad.

Traditional Tales: Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Morales, Yuyi. 2003. Just a Minute: A Trickster Tale and Counting Book. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. ISBN:0811837580.

*Winner of the 2004 The Pura Belpré Medal for Illustration*

BOOK REVIEW
Grandma Beetle’s early morning had just begun when Señor Calavera, a hat-wearing skeleton, comes to her door saying that it is “time for her to come along with him” to the next life. But Grandma Beetle replies sweetly with “Just a minute” and explains that she has “just ONE house to sweep” before she goes. So Señor Calavera waits patiently and begins to count off in both English and Spanish the growing list of chores that Grandma Beetle must do before leaving with him. By the end of the day the frustrated skeleton learns that all of the work was in preparation for her birthday celebration, and that, along with her nine grandchildren, he was the tenth special guest. When the party is over and after she had kissed her grandchildren Grandma Beetle announces that she is ready to go with him, but discovers that Señor Calavera had gone without her but left a note saying that he had so much fun at her party that he can’t wait for the next one. With vibrant and richly colored illustrations that are delightfully simple yet with special detailed, Morales tells a traditional Mexican trickster tale of an old woman outwitting Death in a fun and never scary manner. Also serving as a beginning counting book with English and Spanish words, Just a Minute is book that can be enjoyed by readers of many ages.

CONNECTIONS
*Visit the author, Yuyi Morales, website and download the Señor Calavera puppet and mask to make.
*Read other trickster tales from around the world: A Tale of Tricky Fox by Jum Aylesworth and Illus. by Barbara McClintock, the Trickster tale series by Gerald McDermott, Love and Roast Chicken: A Trickster Take from the Andes Mountains by Barbara Knutson, and Trickster Tales by Josepha Sherman,
*Read other Yuyi Morales books like Little Night and Sand Sister.

Special Note: Yuyi Morales has written a new book that is set to be release on August 19, 2008: Just in Case: A Trickster Tale and Spanish Alphabet Book. This will be the perfect companion book to Just A Minute.

Picture Books: Hello, Arctic!

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Taylor, Theodore. 2002. Hello, Arctic! Illus. by Margaret Chodos-Irvine. NY: Harcourt, Inc. ISBN: 0152015779

BOOK REVIEW
“Arctic winter is cold, so cold/The northern lights flicker across the dark sky/ But no Arctic summer is coming!” In this simple picture book, Taylor brings the changing of seasons of a remote of the part of the world. Written for beginning readers, the text consists of one sentence per double-spread that is reminiscent of the famous Goodnight Moon. As the seasons transitions, the text welcome the animal and plant life that live and grow in the arctic, “Birds return./Hello, birds./Tundra flowers reach for the sun./Hello, flowers” and bid them farewell and goodnight the season turns cold once more, “Polar bears sleep./Good night, bears.” Though the narrative is minimal and tells the stories, the complimentary illustrations take predominance. Through varying types of printmaking techniques Chodos-Irvine’s landscapes swoops and sways in vibrant colors textures. The animals in the foreground beautifully represented to complete the abstract full double-spread. The combination of the lively artwork and simple text, Hello, Arctic! is the perfect book for new readers to enjoy and learn about the different animals in the Arctic.

Picture Books: Dahlia

BIBLIOGRAPHY
McClintock, Barbara. 2002. Dahlia. NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN: 0374316783

BOOK REVIEW
When tomboy Charlotte receives a prim and proper doll dressed in lace from her aunt she wasn’t sure what to do. She doesn’t like dolls. After laying down the rules of “we like digging in dirt and climbing tress” and that the doll Dahlia will “just have to get use to the way we do things” Charlotte, her teddy bear Bruno, and Dahlia begin they day-long fun of making mud cakes and stick and leaf boats, fishing, wagon racing against a group of boys and playing Bruno’s favorite toss-up-in-the-air-and-land-in-a-heap. All the while Dahlia grows dirtier and dirtier yet healthier looking and Charlotte’s attitude changes. By the end of the day, and after healing the doll from a nasty fall from a tree branch, Charlotte exclaims much to the delight of her aunt that, “Bruno and I – like her very much. She has become our best friend.” McClintock’s pen and ink drawings are beautifully detailed and express every single emotion of Charlotte, Bruno and Dahlia. In soft hues of pink, green, blue, cream, and brown the watercolor coloring truly captures a time-gone-by era to create a charming book of making new friends.

CONNECTIONS
*Read more of Barbara McClintock books like: The Fantastic Drawings of Danielle, Adèle & Simon, and Molly and the Magic Wishbone.

Picture Books: Rainstorm

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Lehman, Barbara. 2007. Rainstorm. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN: 061875396

BOOK REVIEW
Stuck inside his seaside home on a rainy day, a lonely boy discovers a mysterious key underneath a chair. Curious, he tries every known lock in the house, but is unsuccessful every time until he slips the key into a large travel trunk. A perfect fit! Hidden inside is a ladder that leads our character deep down to an underground tunnel, which at the other end is a long spiral staircase that takes him all the way back up above ground. To his delight he is now on the lighthouse island that he has seen out his playroom window, and is able to play with new friends on a bright sunny day. When it’s time for supper he must leave his friends and go home, but the next day he brings them through the tunnel to his home so that they all could play once more. In this wordless storybook, Lehman’s simple and clear and brightly colored illustrations, presented in panel, single- and double-spreads format, tell the exciting story of one boy’s adventure on a dreary day and the making of new friends. Rainstorm will certainly capture the imagines of young readers and will make them wonder if there is a hidden ladder in their house.

CONNECTIONS
*Have the readers narrate or create their own text for the book.

Picture Books: The Three Golden Keys

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Sís, Peter. 2001. The Three Golden Keys. NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN: 0374375259

BOOK REVIEW
When a “wild and turbulent storm” sends him off course, a hot-air balloonist finds himself floating to his childhood home of Prague. The narrator finds his family house that is locked by three padlocks that guard “all its memories” and is met by his pet cat who takes him though the city’s winding deserted streets that continue to evoke the distant childhood memories. Stopping at a library, a garden, and the famous town square clock tower, the balloonist encounters surreal figures (a librarian comprised all of books) who present him with scrolls telling three Czech legends and three golden keys to unlock the memories. Written as a personal story to his young daughter, Sís entrances readers with the tale of regaining one’s memories through learning the historical legends of this Old World city. Filling each and every page (including the normally forgotten end pages), the dark, limited color and highly textured illustrations of the city are laced with hidden ghost-like symbols, faces, figures and a motif of cats secretly hidden in the sceneries provide the overall haunting and gothic mood of this tale. With hand-scribed lettering on the antique scrolls and the beginning letter to the author’s daughter to complete the Old Worldly feel, The Three Golden Keys will bring the readers to this ancient city and into the memories of one of its children.

CONNECTIONS
*Read more about the Czech Republic with books like: Favorite Fairy Tales Told in Czechoslovakia by Virginia Haviland and The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís.
*Read other books by Peter Sís: Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei, Tibet Through the Red Box: Through the Red Box, The Tree of Life, A Small Tall Tale from the Far Far North, Madlenka, Follow the Dream, and Komodo!

Intro. to Children and Their Lit.: Los Gatos Black on Halloween

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Montes, Marisa. 2006. Los Gatos Black on Halloween. Illus. by Yuyi Morales. NY: Henry Holt and Company, LLC. ISBN:0805074295.

*Winner of 2008 Pura Belpré Award for illustrations*

BOOK REVIEW

Under an “October’s luna, full and bright” a parade of witches, fantasmas, vampires, esqueletos, and corpses gather for a monster ball. In this creative rhyming story, Montes and Morales bring together Halloween and Dia de los Muertos with a blend of English and Spanish words that curve and weave through the warm and cool earthy and dark colors of the illustrations. With soft edges and textural brushstrokes, the spooky and surreal sceneries, characters and the playful text build the tension up to the very end where the “brujas are booging” and the wolfman is somersaulting to the “unseen dedos-fingers-play[ing] Forgotten music.” When three raps echo through the hall the readers learn of the most scariest things of all – “human niños at the door! Of all the horrors they have seen, the WORST are kids on Halloween!” With a glossary for pronunciation and meaning in the back for those new to Spanish, Los Gatos Black on Halloween is a fun and easy read for all to enjoy on a dark night or on a bright sunny day.

CONNECTIONS
*Read more books with a Halloween theme: Skeleton Hiccups by Margery Cuyler and Illus. by S.D. Schindler, Big Pumpkin by Erica Silverman and Illus. by S.D. Schindler, and The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything by Linda Williams.
*Read books about Dia de los Muertos – Day of the Dead: Maria Molina and the Days of the Dead by Kathleen Krull and Illus. by Enrique O. Sanchez, Gift for Abuelita Celebrating the Day of the Dead/ Un regalo para Abuelita:En celebracion del Dia de los Muertos by Nancy Luenn, and The Spirit of Tio Fernando: A Day of the Dead Story/ El Espiritu De Tio Fernando: Un Historia Del Dia De Los Muertos by Janice Levy and Terese Mlawer.