Lion and Mouse tale of heroes in all sizes

The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney; published by Little, Brown and Company, New York; 2009.

Jerry Pinkney’s wordless book is a masterpiece.  I don’t use that term loosely.  I don’t think I’ve used it at all in a review.  In retelling this Aesop fable, Pinkney chose to set the story on the Serengeti Plains of Africa.  His watercolor and colored pencil illustrations vibrate off the page as if affected by a heat mirage.  Sometimes a glance, sometimes a set of the mouth, tells the story.  The end pages lead us into life on the Serengeti and send us out of the story with lion and his family.

In between, the stories of two heroes are told simultaneously, and on occasion, their stories cross.  We know when we are following lion’s tale because he and his illustrations are larger than life, spilling off the pages; his royal grandness is expressed in excess.  He overflows the front cover with his regal being.  His rich gold tones and even the set of his mouth assure us that this is the king of the beasts.  But what is he glancing at?

As a contrast, the inconsequential life of mouse is told in small boxes which lend a sense of tension to his story and his existence.  Lion’s visage on the front cover is glancing at the back cover where little mouse sits tucked in the grasses of the Serengeti Plain.  Mouse seems to be smiling, and looking with–could it be?–gratitude at the benevolent king.  But don’t be fooled.  Mouse is as much the hero of the story as lion.

Although the book is wordless it is not without sound.  Pinkney added sound effects where appropriate to the story.  The ominous “who who whoooo” of the owl adds drama to mouse’s opening scene.  Even the tiny “scratch scratch” of mouse gnawing through the ropes that have entrapped lion help the story progress.  I could almost smell the sun-warmed grass on the plain, since Pinkney did such a remarkable job incorporating sight and sound.

Aesop’s tale is a story of kindness and courage.  Pinkney has captured the very essence in this Caldecott Medal winner for 2010.  It is, of course, a must-have for any library, as it is a Caldecott winner.  However, it’s value lies in its very being.  In a story time, guide the children to tell the story based on what they observe in each picture, on each page.  Perhaps, with older children, following this book with the story as told by Aesop would be interesting, allow them to compare and contrast the stories: their rendition, Pinkney’s intended story, and the original fable.  I think it would also be terrific to create a take-home box that includes a collection of Aesop’s fables, this title, and even Pinkney’s retelling of some of Aesop’s other tales.  A pathfinder to accompany the box may include the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s collection of Aesop’s fables (http://www.umass.edu/aesop/), a website with all of the fables in one place and a little history of Aesop himself.

Dreaming of friendship

Robot Dreams by Sara Varon; published by First Second Books, New York; 2007.

The innocent images of Dog and his Robot friend belie the depth of emotion in this wordless graphic novel.  Line art is highlighted with typical graphic novel colors, except when Dog and Robot share a day at the beach, which exhibits warm tones of a sunny day on water.  The passage of time is noted in the chapter titles, the passing of the seasons, and in the types of friends Dog finds as he tries to replace Robot.  The theme of friendship, loss and redemption will probably be lost on the youngest readers but will be accessible to children in upper elementary classes, along with their parents.

I would recommend this book to teachers to stimulate language art skills in storytelling.  I might use it in a program in which the children take turns narrating the story.

Dog-n-Bug

Bow-wow Bugs a Bug by Mark Newgarden and Megan Montague Cash; published by Harcourt, Inc., Orlando; 2007.

The endpages in bright turquoise lead us into the book as we follow Bow-Wow and the bug.  I was pleased to see a map of Bow-Wow’s “bug beat” included before the title page.  This simple book looks like a graphic novel for the youngest children with simple, cartoon images of Bow-Wow and his adventures bugging a bug.  Yet, when his adventure grows, so do the images, including double-page spreads.

I’d use this book in a program for storytelling, having the children take turns telling the story in each frame or on each page.  I’d also be sure that it is marked as a “dog” book (with a  sticker on the spine, for example) because it is a charming tale of man’s best friend.

Fooled you with this wordless book?

On the Other Side by Istvan Banyai; published by Chronicle Books, San Francisco; 2005.

From the bright yellow front end pages to the black end pages at back, this book explores opposites from another perspective.  For example, on the back of the first page, which is yellow, is a white page with instructions for folding a paper airplane.  The muted tones on each page are highlighted in red, leading us to points of interest in the graphite illustrations that were digitally colored.  Sometimes the opposites are expected, and sometimes they are charming surprises (look especially for the “wanted” posters).

This charming book would be terrific as a read-aloud to have the children describe each scene and identify the opposites.  I’d also include it on a pathfinder for wordless books or books of opposites. The Other Side would be good to display for April Fools’ Day as well.