From School Library JournalStarred Review. PreSchool-Grade 4–Inspired by the pluck and tradition of Helen Bannerman''s The Story of Little Black Sambo and infused with the flavor of an American tall tale, this story tells of Toby, who bounces from the back of her parents'' buckboard and into the depths of the New England woods, where she must surrender her brand-new sartorial treasures to various denizens in order to secure her safety. A wolf wears her beautiful blue coat, a cougar takes her sunny-yellow sweater, a skunk gets her buck-hide boots, and a porcupine her bonnie brown dress. When a great big bear dons her bright orange mittens (on his ears), the animals begin to argue over which of them is the grandest. A chasing melee ensues, and they melt into a golden brown moat at the foot of the tree they race around. Toby retrieves her clothes, her parents'' search for their lost girl is happily ended, and the tree drinks up that critter juice and transforms it into–sweet maple syrup! Time for a pancake feast! And just as Bannerman''s fictional family did, one parent ate 27 pancakes, one ate 55, and the child ate 169, because she was so hungry. Isaacs''s clever, respectful take on an iconic tale is testament to its appeal. Teague''s pictures are brilliant, cinematic full-bleed oil-paint dramas that capture the essence of a nascent New England spring. His characters'' faces, human and animal, are overtly expressive and their stances just ooze attitude. This irresistibly delicious package will surely become a mainstay on the storytime menu.–Kathy Krasniewicz, Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CT Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From *Starred Review* The author of Swamp Angel (1994) offers another winning, comical tall tale. On a crisp late-winter day, Toby is riding in the back of her parents'' wagon and admiring her new clothes when a bump in the road sends her flying. She sails over treetops, into the clouds, and finally descends into a pile of snow--right at the paws of a wolf, who licks his chops. Quick-thinking Toby escapes by offering the wolf her beautiful coat, which she promises will make him “the grandest animal in the forest.“ Through the woods, Toby encounters more animals, and each time, she slips away with a similar bargain until she is left only with her red long johns. Then the animals come together and fight: Who is the grandest? Their high-speed scuffle takes on magical proportions, just as Toby''s parents find their daughter. After tapping a maple tree for syrup, the reunited family enjoys a pancake meal, right in the woods. Teague''s dynamic paintings, reminiscent of 1930s popular American art in their rounded shapes and smooth textures, expertly showcase the comedy in Isaacs'' animated words. Entertaining scenes of the animals, strutting off in their sartorial splendor, are matched with dialogue that''s just as funny. Together, the bold compositions and words make a surefire read-aloud that will partner well with fables, such as Jerry Pinkney''s Aesop''s Fables (2000), and with other tall tales, such as Kenneth Oppel''s Peg and the Whale (2000) and Lynne Bertrand''s Granite Baby (2005). Gillian EngbergCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved |
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