Genre 2: Schoolyard Rhymes

Schoolyard Rhymes: Kids' Own Rhymes for Rope Skipping, Hand Clapping, Ball Bouncing, and Just Plain Fun

Selected by Judy Sierra. 2005. Schoolyard Rhymes: Kids' Own Rhymes for Rope Skipping, Hand Clapping, Ball Bouncing, and Just Plain Fun. Ill. by Melissa Sweet. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0-375-92516-3.

Plot Summary
Judy Sierra must have had a great time collecting over fifty playground rhymes and chants. She has compiled a collection of rhyming verse related to activities such as rope skipping, hand clapping, and ball bouncing. While some may be more popular than others, children everywhere have chanted these silly rhymes in schoolyards for generations; each generation believing they were the ones who invented them all, I'm sure.

Critical Analysis

Sierra's chosen rhymes are catchy, easy to remember, and as the title suggests, just plain fun. These rhymes beg to be chanted aloud and are sure to transport older readers back to the playground as we reminisce about jumping rope to these very same chants. I found myself remembering many of these rhymes from my own childhood, surprised that some were longer than what I had always thought. While the amount of chants relating to underwear and bathroom humor may be off-putting to some, those are exactly the rhymes to which children, especially boys, are drawn. This is most definitely a book that bridges generations and would be appealing to children of all ages.

Melissa Sweet's energetic watercolor-and-collage illustrations fill the pages with expressive faces, thin lines of verse cleverly shaped into jump ropes, flower stems, and borders, and amusing interpretive images from the rhymes. While she fills the pages with colorful action, one never feels overwhelmed by the artwork. Sweet's art is the perfect accompaniment to enhance the rhymes without overshadowing the text.

Review Excerpts

Booklist:
"Sweet's comical, mixed-media art adds to the wackiness of the rhymes, with jump ropes commanding a prominent position, whether used by children or pickles or bears. A great choice for back-to-school displays."

Horn Book starred review:
"This picture book rejoices in the rhymes of childhood -- not the adult-approved Mother Goose nursery rhymes but the sometimes spiteful, always zesty rhymes chanted by children themselves."

Connections

Teachers could use this book of catchy rhymes when helping students build fluency.

Related Books

Anna Banana: 101 Jump Rope Rhymes by Joanna Cole

Miss Mary Mack and Other Children's Street Rhymes by Joanna Cole

Hopscotch, Hangman, Hot Potato, & Ha Ha Ha: A Rulebook of Children's Games by Jack Macquire

Book cover art from www.librarything.com.

Genre 2: Two Bear Cubs

Two Bear Cubs


San Souci, Robert D. 1997. Two Bear Cubs: A Miwok Legend from California's Yosemite Valley. Ill. by Daniel San Souci. Yosemite National Park, CA: Yosemite Association. ISBN 0939666871.



Plot Summary

Robert San Souci's Two Bear Cubs is a retelling of a Southern Sierra Miwok legend. The legend tells of the formation of the mountain El Capitan. While Mother Grizzly Bear catches rainbow trout and searches for berries, her two overly-rambuctious cubs are told to hunt for berries. As the two bear cubs wrestle and play, they travel further and further downriver. Sleepy, they lay down on a rock in the warm sunshine. They sleep for days. As they sleep, the rock grows taller and taller. All the while, Mother Grizzly is frantically searching for her two lost cubs. She searches far and wide asking for help from everyone she meets along the way. At long last, Red-tailed Hawk sees the cubs high on the mountain. After many tries, it seems no one can climb up the tall mountain to reach the cubs, not Mother Grizzly, Mouse, Badger, Grey Fox, Mother Deer, or even Mountain Lion. When all hope seems lost, along comes tiny Measuring Worm. Curling and stretching for days and days, Measuring Worm slowly makes his way to the top of the mountain and Mother Grizzly's two lost bear cubs. Following the trail left by Measuring Worm, the cubs make their way to the safety of their mother's arms.



Critical Analysis

Two Bear Cubs is teeming with characters based on real Sierra animals and founded upon the Miwok belief that Yosemite Valley was once home to "animal people" - part animal and part human. It is a story of triumph, one that teaches readers that anyone, even the most unlikely among us, can be heroic. Of all the powerful and majestic animals gathered, only lowly Measuring Worm had what it took to climb the mountain and save the cubs.

As California natives, the San Souci brothers are able to lend authoritative voices to both the text and illustrations. Robert San Souci incorporates words from the Miwok language seemlessly, teaching readers the traditional tale of how Yosemite's famous landmark, El Capitan, came to be. His brother, Daniel, gives readers a glimpse into the Miwok culture with his illustrations of the animal folk in traditional Miwok clothing and jewelry.

To create the illustrations for Two Bear Cubs, Daniel San Souci employed the use of watercolor paints. His artwork depicts traditional Miwok clothing, including buckskin skirts and loincloths, abalone shell and glass bead necklaces, and fur headbands.

At the end of the book, Robert San Souci includes notes about the Miwok, related readings for anyone interested in learning more about the Miwok, North American Indians, or Yosemite, and Internet resources for teachers.

Review Excerpts

Booklist:
"...the excellent background notes on the Miwok and the story of the small, triumphant worm make this a fine purchase for most libraries."

School Library Journal:
"It may be difficult, at first, to accept the adorable pictures that feature the gray fox and badger wearing breech cloths and Mother Bear wearing faux pearls with the serious Native American theme of the courage and triumph of a lowly worm. However, the opening paragraph explains that the story was set during a time when creatures were part animal and part human, and once into the tale, the illustrations enhance the perspectives of climbing "El Capitan"."

Connections

Teachers would find this book beneficial when teaching the theme of bravery.

Using this book as a guide, students could take a local landmark and write their own version of how it came into being.

Students could compare this tale with other children's books with Native American themes.

Related Books

Legends of the Yosemite Miwok by Frank LaPena

Native Ways: California Indian Stories and Memories by Malcolm Margolin

Book cover art by http://www.librarything.com/.

Genre 2: Traditional Literature

Bubba The Cowboy Prince

Ketteman, Helen. 1997. Bubba The Cowboy Prince:A Fractured Texas Tale. Ill. by James Warhola. New York: Scholastic. ISBN 0590255061.

Plot Summary

Bubba loves ranching and never complains, even though he is forced to wait hand and foot on his wicked stepdaddy and two spoiled, lazy stepbrothers. When Miz Lurleen, the "purtiest and richest gal in the county", holds a ball in hopes of finding a husband to help her with her ranch, Bubba works all day getting his stepbrothers and stepdaddy ready for the ball. At the end of the day, as the others leave for the ball, Bubba is too dirty and stinky to attend. On his way to the cow pasture, Bubba meets his fairy godcow. She uses her magic to prepare Bubba for the ball. As soon as Miz Lurleen sees Bubba she knows he is something special, but when the clock strikes twelve, Bubba turns back into his stinky, raggedy self. He makes a speedy exit, losing one of his boots in the process. Miz Lurleen searches far and wide for the lawful owner of the boot and is finally reunited with Bubba. Of course, they ride off into the sunset and live happily ever after.

Critical Analysis

In Helen Ketteman's Cinderella parody, readers are treated to a decidedly Texas flavor. Ketteman proves she is a master of using dialogue and setting to add Texas flair without sacrificing the characteristics of the traditional fairytale. Ketteman use of figurative language makes this a story that is as fun to read aloud as it is to hear.

As with the dialogue, James Warhola's illustrations are rich and energetic. Warhola uses color to convey clear character traits. The wicked stepdaddy is dark and menacing, while Bubba is wide-eyed and innocent. From the characters in the story to the cows in the pasture, the facial expressions help bring this tale to life.

Warhola uses every opportunity to bring the Texas culture to the forefront. From the longhorns and armadillos to the horseshoe fireplace, cactus hat rack, horse-head armchairs, and the Alamo bench, his illustrations are rich with Texas panache.

Review Excerpts

Publishers Weekly: "While spoofing Cinderella is not a new idea, Ketteman and Warhola's (Aunt Hilarity's Bustle) well-matched flair for hyperbole gives both the narrative and illustrations a one-two punch."

Kirkus Review: "A Cinderella parody features the off-the-wall, whang-dang Texas hyperbole of Ketteman (The Year of No More Corn, 1993, etc.) and the insouciance of Warhola, who proves himself only too capable of creating a fairy godcow; that she's so appealingly whimsical makes it easy to accept the classic tale's inversions."

Connections

Students could determine meanings of the idiomatic phrases.This could be especially meaningful for ELL students.

Students could use a character comparison graphic organizer to demonstrate understanding of character analysis.

Related Books

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe.

Lon Po Po by Ed Young

Book cover art from www.librarything.com

Genre 1: Pass It Down

Marcus, Leonard S. 2007. Pass It Down: Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. New York: Walker & Company.


Plot Summary

Marcus introduces us to five illustrious families instrumental in producing some of our most endearing picture books. Each chapter spotlights a different family: The Crews and Jonas family, the Hurd family, the Myers family, the Pinkney family, and the Rockwell family.


Critical Analysis

Leonard Marcus introduces readers to the back stories of five of the most famous picture-book families in his book Pass It Down:Five Picture-Book Families Make Their Mark. Not only do we get an indepth look at how these families evolved, but readers are treated to a glimpse into the picture book industry.

From family photos to excerpts from the picture books to the drawing process to letters from editors, Marcus shows us the journey each of these authors and artists traveled to become the legendary families we now know.

In his book, Marcus reveals the way many of our beloved picture books came into being. We see the influence of family on our most important decisions. These families show us that many times, even when we try to fight it, we become very close copies of our parents.

It is interesting to note that many of the children in these families, though interested in art, did not necessarily strive to become picture-book illustrators. These children first studied animation, art history, or photography before realizing the artist joy and satisfaction provided by illustrating picture books.

The only disappointment is the condensed list of published works by each family, which omits those titles mentioned in the book. It seems odd that Marcus could list books from the Hurd family and not list Goodnight, Moon, or include a list of books from the Crews family without listing Freight Train. Perhaps Marcus omitted these titles from his bibliographical section because he speaks of them in the body of the book, but why then did he list others which were discussed in the book such as Walter Dean and Christopher Myers' Brown Angels?


Review Excerpts

School Library Journal:
"Marcus carefully makes the point that, although perhaps blessed with some inherited talent and encouraged by their parents, all of the children pursued their art with diligence and have emerged with their own unique styles."
A Kirkus starred review:
"Filled with intriguing tidbits, this is an outstanding work about the connections between parents and children, editors and artists and readers and writers."


Connections

Pass It Down would be a beneficial book for librarians and teachers doing an author/illustrator study, but also for art teachers teaching different types of illustration media or careers in the field of book illustration.


Related Books

Side by Side: Five Favorite Picture-Book Teams Go to Work by Leonard S. Marcus
A Caldecott Celebration: Seven Artists and their Paths to the Caldecott Medal by Leonard S. Marcus

Book cover art from www.librarything.com

Genre 1: Leonardo the Terrible Monster

Willems, Mo. 2005. Leonardo the Terrible Monster. New York: Hyperion. ISBN 0786852941.

Plot Summary

Leonardo the Monster is feeling dejected as he is terrible at scaring anyone. He has none of the trademark features requisite of monsters. He lacks size, enough teeth, and the "just plain weird" qualities of other monsters. In a stroke of genius, he decides to find the "most scaredy-cat kid" to scare. As luck would have it, he chooses Sam, who bursts into tears when Leonardo jumps out to scare him. Sam lists the many reasons for his tears, not one having to do with Leonardo's monster skills. In the end, the two become friends, and Leonardo discovers it's much more fun to be a wonderful friend than a terrible monster.

Critical Analysis

As a former writer for Sesame Street, Mo Willems knows just what appeals to small children, and he hits the nail on the head with this simplistic tale of Leonardo, a very unscary monster. Willems uses muted colors, large, ornate fonts, and lots of empty space to create his endearing tale. For much of the story, Leonardo is depicted as a small character at the bottom of the pages, however, when he makes his all-important decision to be a friend to Sam, Leonardo fills two pages.

Though the pages lack colorful backgrounds, the monsters themselves are detailed enough to keep the reader's attention. Willem's details range from an asterisk to denote a monster with more teeth than what is shown to a monster with an earring, and another with an ankle bracelet. As Leonardo conducts his research for the perfect victim, readers are treated to books, file folders, an over-flowing waste paper basket, and crossed out candidates.

Willems use of large lettering in fancy font with all capital letters and random words printed in off-setting colors creates an easy to read story that appeals to all ages. His use of phrases such as "the most scaredy-cat kid" and "scare the tuna salad out of him" will certainly appeal to younger children. Of course the life lesson revealed at the end of the story is one that will surely please parents.

Review Excerpts

Booklist:
""Your Pal, Mo Willems,"as the cover reads, offers a simple message-driven story, elevated by a smart, striking design."

A Starred review from School Library Journal: "A surefire hit."

Horn Book Starred Review: "Willems's theatrical story plays out on tall, uncluttered, muted-color pages."

Kirkus Review: "The highly predictable ending is made fresh by the superb control of pacing, just-zany-enough sense of humor and body language readers have come to expect from the creator of Pigeon and Knufflebunny."

Connections

~Identify cause and effect relationships throughout the story, specifically Sam's explanation for his tears.

~Make paper bag monster puppets to reenact this story. Children can draw and color small lunch bags and work in pairs to recreate the dialogue between Leonardo and Sam. Have students continue the story. What new adventures will the two characters encounter?

Related Books

Other Books by Mo Willems:
Edwina the Dinosaur That Didn’t Know She Was Extinct. Hyperion, 2006.
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale. Hyperion, 2004.
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. Hyperion, 2003.

Other Cause and Effect Books:
Aardema,Verna. Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears. Dial Books, 1975.
Carle, Eric. The Grouchy Lady Bug. Harper Collins, 1976.
Noble, Trinka Hakes. The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash. Dial Press, 1980.
Numeroff, Laura. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. Harper&Row, 1985.

Book cover art from http://www.librarything.com/.

Genre 1: Picture Books

Joseph Had a Little Overcoat


Taback, Simms. 1977/1999. Joseph Had a Little Overcoat. New York: Viking. ISBN 0670878553.



Plot Summary
Knowing, though it is old and worn, it still has worth, a man finds many uses for a beloved overcoat. The story teaches the moral that it is possible to make something from nothing. The book ends with a note from the author and the song that inspired Taback's story.

Critical Analysis
As Joseph's overcoat becomes old and worn, he recycles it into a little jacket. As the jacket becomes old and worn, he turns it into a vest. As the vest becomes worn, he uses it to make a scarf. The story continues in this fashion until Joseph is left with a button. Upon losing the button, the reader feels a sense of abandonment as the artwork is sparse and the animals turn their backs on Joseph. Joseph then realizes that he is not left with nothing after all. He uses his experience with the overcoat to create a book, showing it is possible to make something out of nothing.

This story, which was adapted from a Yiddish folk song found at the end of the story, is a tribute to the Jewish culture. Taback uses artwork to weave European Jewish references throughout his book. Though the story is a simple one, the layering of the message and artwork are complex. With ever shrinking cutouts on every other page, the book encourages readers, both young and old, to predict what Joseph will create next.

Caldecott Award winners employ a visual experience to develop a story. Taback's artwork uses both drawings and real pictures to create eye-catching pictures on every page. His use of detail on each page engages the reader's attention as one does not want to miss anything on the pages. His vivid drawings help bring the story to life for the reader.

Much of Taback's artwork contains allusions to Sholom Aleichem, whose story of Tevye became the well-known musical "Fiddler on the Roof". Translated from Hebrew, Sholom Aleichem means "Peace be unto you". This message, along with the artwork, creates another layer of the story as one senses the peaceful life that Joseph leads. Taback is also able to show humor with his artwork. In one newspaper clipping, he gives us the headline "Fiddler on Roof Falls Off Roof".

Review Excerpts
Caldecott Medal/Honor

Starred review from School Library Journal:
"A book bursting at the seams with ingenuity and creative spirit."

From Booklist:
"This newly illustrated version of a book Taback first published in 1977 is a true example of accomplished bookmaking--from the typography and the endpapers to the bar code, set in what appears to be a patch of fabric. Taback's mixed-media and collage illustrations are alive with warmth, humor, and humanity."

Highly Recommended from Library Talk:
"Music to the song "I Had a Little Overcoat" is included on one of the final pages--an addition which, along with the illustrations, will bring readers back to this tale again and again."

Connections
~Art --Design your own vest- Using a brown paper bag cut it into the shape of a vest. Using marker, crayons, or other art supplies design the vest. For older students, find a discarded article of clothing and make it into something else that is useful.
~Find the pages that refer to Fiddler on the Roof. Find a picture of the Fiddler character in the movie or play. Compare the Fiddler character to Joseph.

Related Books

~Simms Taback's Caldecott Honor-winning There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly and the classic Too Much Noise.

Book Cover art from www.librarything.com.