Traditional Literature: Just A Minute

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Morales, Yuyi, Trans.  2003.  JUST A MINUTE: A TRICKSTER TALE AND COUNTING BOOK Ill. by Yuyi Morales.  San Francisco:  Chronicle Books. ISBN  0811864839

PLOT SUMMARY

JUST A MINUTE begins with a knock on the door. When Grandma Beetle answers, she discovers Señor Calavera. Señor Calavera is ready to take Grandma Beetle away with him but she is not ready to go. Grandma Beetle has some things to accomplish and makes Señor Calavera wait until she is done. After each task is complete Señor Calavera is made to wait “just a minute” as Grandma Beetle completes the task. Finally, when Grandma Beetle is done and all nine of her grandchildren arrive, we discover it is her birthday and Señor Calavera is the tenth guest. Señor Calavera is so impressed with Grandma Beetles party, he leaves a note saying he will be back for the next!

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

JUST A MINUTE is a well-done trickster tale in which Grandma Beetle tries to outwit death, Señor Calavera. The drama of this tale is defined by its bold and bright illustrations that perfectly define traditional Mexican culture. The images showcase piñatas, papel picado and traditional Mexican foods. Suspense is added to the story by the repeated phrase “Just a minute!” as we realize Grandma Beetle is trying to trick death from taking her away.  As Señor Calavera is made to wait by Grandma Beetle his expressions change regularly and show his confusion and frustration at the situation. This wonderful story showcases the importance of family and cultural celebration in Mexico. The use of Spanish words also helps readers become immersed in the culture of the story.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

KIRKUS REVIEWS: “Winking and nodding as she goes, a Latino grandmother will charm readers as she charms Death Himself in this original counting-cum-trickster tale.”

BOOKLIST: “The splendid paintings and spirited storytelling--along with useful math and multicultural elements--augur a long, full life for this original folktale.”

CONNECTIONS

*This story would be an excellent supplement to the study of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) or any study of Mexico. It could also be used to teach differences in Halloween style celebrations.

* Américas Award for Children’s and Young Adult Literature, sponsored by the national Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs (CLASP)

* Golden Kite Honor Book, Picture Book Illustration

*Other stories by Yuyi Morales:

Morales, Yuyi. VIVA FRIDA. ISBN 1596436034

Morales, Yuyi. NINO WRESTLES THE WORLD. ISBN 1250062705

Morales, Yuyi. JUST IN CASE: A TRICKSTER TALE AND SPANISH ALPHABET BOOK. ISBN 1596433299

Traditional Literature: The Three Pigs

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wiesner, David, Trans.  2001.  THE THREE PIGS Ill. by David Wiesner.  San Francisco:  Clarion Books. ISBN  0618007016

PLOT SUMMARY

This version of The Three Pigs begins just like all of the others. The wolf visits the first pig’s house and repeats the iconic lines: “Little pig, little pig. Let me come in!” and the pigs answers with the familiar “Not by the hair on my chinny-chin-chin.” But as the wolf blows the house down, the pig is blown out of the story. The wolf continues on and meets the same conclusion. As the pigs realize they are no longer in their own story they fold up the pages of the next scene into a paper airplane and start to fly. They see the stories of many other fairy tales such as “Hey diddle diddle”. They free the cat that plays the fiddle and bring him along on their voyage. The next story is of a dragon who is protecting a gold rose. A prince is sent to slay the dragon and the pigs rescue him from certain death and bring him along on their voyage. They eventually travel back to their own story where the wolf is about to blow down the house made of brick. The dragon opens the door and scares the wolf away ending all of the pig’s problems. They are live happily ever after. 

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The setting of The Three Pigs starts out in the traditional setting of the straw, stick and brick houses but quickly changes into something else entirely. The illustrations of the story are very detailed and look very similar to the pictures you would see in a graphic novel. The illustrator does a very good job of having the characters show their feelings. As the wolf finds out there is no pig to eat, you can clearly see the confusion on his face as the story is not going the way it should. The illustrator also uses speech bubbles to show the dialogue of the pigs once they leave the story.

As the pigs are blown out of their story and into a parallel one, the illustrations are no longer colorful. The only color comes from the paper airplane (made of the pages of their own story) on which they travel. The pigs travel through blank white pages until they enter another story. Along the way they meet new friends and bring them back to their own story. The true happy ending happens when their dragon friend helps scare the wolf away.

As the story ends, the words on the pages fall off the book to signify the end of the pig’s imaginative journey through the parallel world. 

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY: “Wiesner's brilliant use of white space and perspective (as the pigs fly to the upper right-hand corner of a spread on their makeshift plane, or as one pig's snout dominates a full page) evokes a feeling that the characters can navigate endless possibilities--and that the range of story itself is limitless.”

SHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Witty dialogue and physical comedy abound in this inspired retelling of a familiar favorite.”

BOOKLIST: “Wiesner has created a funny, wildly imagined tale that encourages kids to leap beyond the familiar, to think critically about conventional stories and illustration, and perhaps to flex their imaginations and create wonderfully subversive versions of their own stories.”

CONNECTIONS

*Caldecott Medal Winner

* “I love this book. Are there more?” Trent (2^nd Grader)

* This would be a great book to inspire students to write their own alternative storylines to popular fairytales.

*Other stories by David Wiesner:

Wiesner, David. FLOTSAM. 0618194576

Wiesner, David. TUESDAY. 0395551137

Wiesner, David. SECTOR 7. 0395746566

Traditional Literature: Rapunzel

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Zelinsky, Paul O., Trans.  1997.  RAPUNZEL Ill. by Paul O. Zelinsky. New York: Dutton Children’s Books. ISBN  0525456074

PLOT SUMMARY

The story of RAPUNZEL begins with a married couple who find out they are expecting a child. With this new pregnancy, the woman craves a green vegetable called Rapunzel that grows in a sorceress’s garden behind their home. She craves it so badly that it affects her health dramatically. The woman’s husband climbs down into the garden and picks some of the herb for his wife who eats it and wants more. Quickly, he returns to the garden where the sorceress catches him and offers him a deal for the herb. The sorceress tells the man he can take more but he has to give up the child to her when it is born. When the sorceress takes the child, she names her Rapunzel. She takes care of the girl and places her in a tower when she is twelve years old. After a couple of years, a king’s son hears Rapunzel singing and starts to visit Rapunzel every night and eventually proposes marriage to her. One day, Rapunzel claims that her dress is too tight and the sorceress finds out she is pregnant and forces her to live in the wilderness to have the child on her own. Rapunzel eventually gives birth to twins. The sorceress visits Rapunzel and cuts off her long braid to trick the prince to visit. When he reaches the top, the sorceress pushes him out and he falls to the ground. He does not die but is blinded, living off berries and herbs while wandering around the country side. He stumbles upon where Rapunzel and her children are living in the wilderness and her tears heal his sight. The family travels back to the kingdom where the story was first set and they live happily ever after.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Paul Zelinsky’s version of Rapunzel is a very “classic” retelling harkening back to the story telling of the Grimm Brothers. It does not hold back in its tale and the illustrations help mirror the dramatics of the story. The illustrations are very beautiful, detailed and created in the renaissance style. The setting of the story is very fairytale-like and set in a time very long ago.

The reader can see all of the emotions and action taking place in the story. The sorceress’s face is very scary and frightening during scenes when she is confronting the male characters of the story. Also, when the prince first visits Rapunzel, we see her fear as she has never seen a man before.

The diction and tone used in the story is done masterfully. We can feel exactly as the characters feel whether scared, devastated or joyful. Readers will have no problem connecting emotionally to the characters. They will empathize with Rapunzel and her prince and may ask why the sorceress is so evil and mean. But by the end of the story, readers are re-affirmed in the theme that good wins over evil. They can see this when Rapunzel is given her happily ending after all of the hardships she has had to face.

This story may get confusing for some younger readers who will not understand why Rapunzel’s dress becomes smaller/tighter. They may not be able to connect some of the story elements. Readers may also find this version of the tale hard to relate to if they have seen some of the more “Disney-like” versions of the story.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY: "A breathtaking interpretation gives the fairy tale new art-historical roots, with illustrations that daringly-and effectively-mimic the masters of Italian Renaissance painting."

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “An elegant and sophisticated retelling that draws on early French and Italian versions of the tale. Masterful oil paintings capture the Renaissance setting and flesh out the tragic figures.”

KIRKUS REVIEWS: “Suffused with golden light, Zelinsky's landscapes and indoor scenes are grandly evocative, composed and executed with superb technical and emotional command.”

HORN BOOK: "Simply put, this is a gorgeous book; it demonstrates respect for the traditions of painting and the fairy tale while at the same time adhering to a singular, wholly original, artistic vision."

CONNECTIONS

* Caldecott Medal Book

*Other versions of Rapunzel stories:

Isadora, Rachel. RAPUNZEL. ISBN 0399247726 (African Setting)

Hale, Shannon & Hale, Dean. RAPUNZEL’S REVENGE. ISBN 1599902885 (Graphic Novel)

Gunderson, Jessica. REALLY, RAPUNZEL NEEDED A HAIRCUT!: THE STORY OF RAPUNZEL AS TOLD BY DAME GOTHEL (THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY) ISBN 1479519502 (Fractured Fairytale)