The Man Who Walked Between the Towers By Mordicai Gerstein (Published in 2003) I really enjoyed reading this picture book for many different reasons. The first reason being that it is based on a true story so it was exciting to learn about who walked between the Twin Towers and how they were able to do it. The big question that was in my mind the whole time I was reading it was, “Is he going to be successful and walk between the towers?” It kept me turning the pages and was very suspenseful. Another thing that I really enjoyed was the illustrations. They were very colorful, and they definitely enhanced the text because of the expressions on the character’s faces, and the setting. I also thought it was really neat how some of the pages unfolded into a larger picture. This really showed how tall the towers were and the point of view of the people who watched Philippe Petit walk on a line across the towers. The illustrator definitely used lines to his advantage because I was always following the lines in the pictures to the top of the tower. The genre of the book is a little unclear to me because it could be a couple of different things. I looked it up online and on one site it said this book is a biography, and another site said it was historical fiction, and a third site said it was realistic fiction. I think it is technically a biography because it is a true story. What do you think? I don’t know how “multicultural” this book is because it mostly revolves around an event rather than a culture. The main character is French, but it doesn’t talk about his background at all. I read this book to my students yesterday and their response was amazing! Their faces lit up when they discovered that he actually completed his goal. I had the students write down what they were thinking as I was reading this story, and they all said they felt so nervous about his falling down, and they were so excited when he made it across. The author really makes the reader feel for the main character even though he was “technically” doing something he wasn’t supposed to. I think it is so important for the main character to be believable so the students can connect to him/her and relate to the story. Before reading the story, I did give my students some background information on the Twin Towers because some of them did not know what happened to them, and I feel that they need to understand the importance of the towers before they read the story to gain a better appreciation for the book.
I really enjoyed reading The Man Who Walked Between the Towers. I was really shocked that he was going string a tight rope between the towers and actually proceed to walk across it. To me this seemed a little unrealistic I thought immediately, What if he falls? On the other hand, I suppose if you are a tight rope walker and you can walk on a rope that is one hundred feet in the air successfully, then the height of the rope must not make that much of a difference. The story was humorous to me because of Philippe’s comfort when on the tight rope. He was able to taunt the police by dancing across the rope, but not obeying their orders. This story also made me feel proud of the character’s accomplishments and in the end I felt sad being left with the last line of the story, “Now the towers are gone.” If you were not alive or old enough to remember the tragedy of September 11, you might not have had the same feeling as the story closed. Instead you would have been left wondering, where did the towers go? What happened to them? With respect to the genre, I don’t believe that it is a biography. A biography tells a person’s life story. This picture book only tells a snap shot of Philippe Petit’s life. This inclines me to think that it would be historical fiction. It replicates something that really did happen in a narrative format. I checked Wikipedia for the accuracy of the story and it was incredibly accurate. The part where he is lying down on the wire, I had a hard time believing was possible. However, it was documented on Wikipedia. The thickness of the rope was different in the picture book in comparison to online, but not by much. The book said the rope was 5/8 of an inch and the encyclopedia said ¾ of an inch. These are both very close in thickness. The watercolor paintings in the book are amazing. I also especially liked the pages that flipped out. Kids will enjoy these as well. They usually like things that pop out or flip open in a text. The flip out page with the towers really helps to emphasis just how high the towers really were. In addition, the illustration on page one shows the vast height in comparison to all the other buildings. The author was also very creative with his perspectives in his illustrations. You were able to see what things looked like from the tightrope walkers point of view and from the ground vantage point.
I agree with you that it was hard to believe a man could walk on a tight rope and not fall off. I had to convince my students that this story was true because they can't imagine anyone being able to do that! I spent a lot of time reading the reviews on Amazon about this book and I could not find one that was negative about this book. All of them said essentially the same thing which was that this book was appropriate for children and it celebrates a brave man who walked between the towers. A lot of people talked about how they bought this book for their children to talk about how important the towers were, and to talk about what happened to them. The last two pages were definitely painful to read knowing what happened, and I think it really reaches people who witnessed the towers falling first hand or on the news. It might be different for kids reading it today who did not witness this event, but it is still a powerful ending to the story. The climax of this book was definitely natural because he made it across the towers, multiple times. My students laughed when the judge sentenced him to perform for children in the park. They wanted to know if he was still performing so we did a little research project to learn more about him, and they looked him up online. It was wonderful seeing children respond to this book because it was so fun to watch how he accomplished this feat.
I like that you shared the book with your students. I might try that for one of the upcoming books we have to read. I agree with you that there are not any multicultural connections in this text.
I went to the following link: http://www.uleth.ca/edu/currlab/handouts/genres.html and found the definition of biography to include: biographical fiction. Maybe the genre is biography. I’m not sure either. Scholastic codes it as autobiography/ biography so I am going to evaluate the book based on this. The character in the story is interesting to read about. The book was captivating due to the characters amazing accomplishment. An average person is not talented enough to ride a unicycle, juggle fiery torches, and walk across a tight rope. Therefore, having all these talents makes him multifaceted. The story contained a lot of detail about carrying out the plan to walk between the buildings and the process of securing the tight rope. Due to the elaborate illustrations, there was no need for the author to use a lot of words to describe the setting. The pictures portrayed New York City beautifully.
Rapunzel: A Groovy Fairy Tale by Lynn Roberts and illustrated by David Roberts. This story, based on the story of Rapunzel, was definitely a light-hearted story about a girl living in the city with her evil Aunt Esme. It takes place in the 1970’s, and music plays an important role in the story. I would not say that this is a good book for me because it did not have a lot of depth to it, and I didn’t really get into the story, but I do think that students will like reading this book because some parts are funny, and the illustrations are appealing to them. Another reason I think they will enjoy this book is because Aunt Esme works as a mean cafeteria lady, and the students can relate to the school aspect of the story. They may even have an aunt that they don’t particularly like, or they may know someone like Aunt Esme. Students generally enjoy books where good triumphs over evil. The genre of this book is traditional literature because it is based on the old story of Rapunzel who was locked away in a tower and is eventually rescued by a prince who climbs her hair. I do not feel that this book has a multicultural aspect to it, although the setting is the 1970’s when music had a huge influence on people, and the characters are dressed from the 70’s. This book is not rich in cultural details, and it does seem more superficial with the main focus being entertainment for children. As a piece of literature, the plot seemed to flow and there was a natural climax at the end. I don’t know how believable the main character was because she didn’t seem to be upset that she had to stay in a room all day and couldn’t see the outside world. There was a romantic aspect to the book which is something the reader can more easily relate to. I can also imagine students feeling bad for Rapunzel because she was lost in the streets when she escaped, and then feeling happy that the evil Aunt Esme had to walk up the stairs every day because she couldn’t climb Rapunzel’s hair. Personally, I don’t think the theme of this book inspired hope because the problem isn’t one that a lot of people can relate to. Most people aren’t kept locked away in an apartment, however good triumphs over evil in the end and Rapunzel and Roger end up together which is common in almost all traditional literature. The illustrations enhance the book because they are mostly lively pictures with lots of color that really reflect the 1970’s colors. There are features that are exaggerated in the story such as the character’s noses, and eyes. There was one illustration where Rapunzel and Roger are in her room which is decorated with posters and music, and I believe that this really emphasizes the importance of music and reflects the lifestyle of the 70’s. Also, in all of the pictures with Aunt Esme, there is a crow which symbolizes evil and darkness. I didn’t notice this until the second time looking at the illustrations.
I thought this was a great story because it had a happy ending. I was able to relate to this story because I am at the point in my life where I am happy being single, but I am waiting patiently for prince charming to appear. I think the book did have a few messages. One message is that you should make the best of whatever situation you are in. Another message being that good things happen to people who wait. The story is an example of the saying, “What goes around comes around.” Aunt Esme had it coming to her. All the awful things she did to Rapunzel she had to pay for in the end, by having to walk up hundreds of stairs to get to the apartment.
Children might easily relate to this book if they have a parent who is overprotective who doesn’t allow them to do the things they wish to do. Although I don’t know if a child would be so happy about this, as Rapunzel was in the story. The difference is that Rapunzel didn’t really know what she was missing since she was always locked in the apartment. Given that the story was traditional literature, based on a fairy tale, it had many aspects that were unrealistic, but fitting to this genre. Rapunzel was locked up in her home, never allowed to go out. Nowadays if a child were locked in their home for an extended period of time a parent could go to jail. Also, a person climbing another person’s hair is not realistic. The modern day twist to the story was interesting. I liked how it took place in a city implying that regular people can live happily ever after, not just princess and princesses who grow up in a castle. The pictures really compliment the text. Aunt Esme’s illustration emphasizes just how repulsive of a person she really is.
This book did not contain any multicultural considerations. As you mentioned it did very creatively portray the era of the 70’s with clothing style, music, and artifacts. The characters were wearing bell-bottoms and platform shoes. The music was played using a record player. There was a Rubik’s cube and a lava lamp in the illustrations, which are both characteristic of this time.
After looking on Amazon at the review for this book, there were only four of them posted. They were all positive reviews of this book, and they all discuss how this book is interesting and fun. A few of them talk about how this book really reminds them of the 1970’s and the illustrations were comforting to them. All of the reviews were parents who bought this book for their children, and they all mention that their children love reading this book. I do personally think that this book would be more appealing to people who lived during the 1970’s because it offers them more connections to the story and it is very nostalgic.
I would use this book in my classroom when we learn about traditional literature and folk tales because it is a cute story that my students may enjoy hearing. There is not a lot of depth, but the students may be able to make connections and predictions as they read this book. They will probably enjoy the colorful illustrations, and it is a good piece to read to them to teach them about the themes of good versus evil which is a common theme in most traditional literature books. I would probably follow up this book by reading Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and other classics so that the students could compare how the books are similar and different. Comparing and contrasting texts is a skill we use a lot in our school, and this would be a fun way to get the kids to notice how these books compare. Do you think you would use this book in your classroom? How would you use it?
I am going to post about The Old African because I am going to Massachusetts for the weekend! I will respond to what you write either tonight or tomorrow. Thanks!
The Old African written by Julius Lester and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney Copyright 2005 This book completely took me by surprise because it was nothing like I thought it would be. By doing a picture walk of the book, and looking at the title and the front and back cover, I was able to figure out that this multicultural book was based on slavery. It wasn’t until I began reading this book that I realized how deep and moving it really was. There were even times when it became difficult to read because the words evoked so much emotion. It was so hard to read about how the slaves were treated, and about what happened to the little boy who was whipped almost until death. It was even confusing at times because I didn’t understand how the Old African had special powers to help and communicate with other slaves. I would consider this book a chapter book because it is divided into four sections and it is fairly long. The genre of this book is fiction because even though it is based on actual events, there is an element of fantasy throughout the story. This is definitely a multicultural book because it is based on African Americans who had to endure slavery. It is rich in cultural details, and it provides in-depth treatment of the issue of slavery. It does not “fill a quota” because the African Americans were the basis of the book. This book encourages the understanding of common bonds of humanity because it shows how important it was for slaves to bond together even though horrible things were happening to them. As I was looking at the literary criteria, this book definitely had an overlying question which was, “Do these slaves make it out of slavery and become free?” The climax of the story did seem natural because the slaves finally made it to the ocean to walk to Africa. Obviously this could not really happen, but it is based on a legend of slaves who tried to walk to Africa from Macon, Georgia. The characters definitely seemed real because of their emotions, and how they dealt with the things that happened to them. Also, I cared about the characters because it hurt me to hear about what happened to them and how their families were separated. The characters did fit into the setting which made the true elements of the story believable. The illustrations in this book were absolutely amazing. You could sense the emotion from the pictures by looking at the slaves’ faces and reactions to what was happening to them. The pictures definitely reinforce text and extend the plot because of the detail in the pictures. Some of the pictures were hard to figure out because there were no distinct lines, and the colors blended together, but if you look at the picture as a whole, you can see what is happening. A lot of dark and ominous colors were used which reflects the mood of the story. Although the pictures didn’t reflect another point of view of the story, they establish the mood of the story.
I think I would use this book in the classroom in the same way. Kids love to see the different variations of fairytales. This year we read the story titled Cendrillon and compared it to some of the other versions of Cinderella such as: Yeh Shen, The Rough-Face Girl, and Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters. It might be interesting to compare Rapunzel A Groovy Fairy Tale to other versions. It reinforces students’ reading comprehension through compare and contrast. The process also gives students the opportunity to go back and take a closer look at the illustrations and parts of the story. Far too often kids miss out on the gorgeous illustrations in stories because they are read aloud to the class and the children cannot see them. Or they see the pictures for a few seconds and they never get to go back to them. The author of this book, Lynn Roberts, also wrote a book titled Praise for Cinderella: An Art Deco Love Story. I will add this to my collection when I have students compare versions of Cinderella in the future. While searching online I also found a book titled, Letters from Rapunzel, by Sara Lewis Holmes. The girl on the cover is pictured with blond hair. It might be interesting to compare that one as well. It seemed to be even more modern than Rapunzel: A Groovy Fairy Tale.
Table of Contents: Title: The Old African Author: Julius Lester Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney Date of Publication: 2005 Category: Multicultural Genre: Historical Fiction
This book is truly amazing. I really like this book because it invoked a lot of emotion. I felt badly for the characters in the story as I read and I hoped they would escape their master. I agree with you that it was a very deep book. At first I was also confused about the Old African being able to hear the thoughts of others and vice versa. Some of the elements of the story were based on fact while others were based on fantasy. There was a great deal of spirituality throughout the book, which I believe is representative of the African culture. This spiritually turned their desires into reality. The majority of the book was very painful to read due to the way the slaves were treated. It is very sad that one human being could treat another in this way. The African people did not do anything to deserve such treatment. They were minding their own business when they were attacked in their village in the middle of the night by another tribe. It was a relief that the slaves were able triumph in the end over their master and make it back to Africa safely. To me this book represents slavery as a whole. The ocean being the long distance we have traveled over the years to get to where we are now. The walk to freedom in the story was a long one, as was the abolition of slavery. The language in the story was extremely rich and detailed. The author states, “I sought to make the language as visually rich as I could, more so than I might have otherwise.” The descriptions included literary devices such as similes and metaphors. One example was, “But Riley’s arms were as heavy as stones and he could not turn his body.” Lester describes the slave, “His face was as expressionless as tree bark.” Although the language was very descriptive I felt as though some parts weren’t appropriate for elementary school children. The matter being discussed in this book is a serious event and I don’t know if it would be best to read the book in its entirety. I might choose to read parts of the book as read aloud to accompany a unit on slavery. I think it would be better suited for the upper grades, possibly sixth grade or above as the language at times can be inappropriate. Would you still read it, but substitute other words in place of graphic words? Do you think it is better suited for more mature students?
After giving it some thought, I would probably use only a few pages of the book to share with my students during our slavery unit. Not every page has a violent scene on it, and describes the monstrosities that occurred during this time. I would definitely have to substitute some vocabulary, but it would get the message across to my students. The pictures are also very useful teaching tools because they convey so much and the students would be able to get a better idea about slavery based on the illustrations in the book. I also agree with you that the similes in the book were really amazing. I would probably share them with my students as well since we learn about how similes enhance literature all year long!
The review of this book on Amazon talk about the "stunning imagery" of the illustrations and the "human emotion" that is conveyed in the text AND the illustrations. Most of them are summaries of the book with personal reactions to this text. Most people wrote about how it made slavery more real to them because it is a foreign concept to people who were not alive during this time. All of the reactions were positive.
I did some research on Julius Lester and I think this story meant a lot to him because he is an African American man. He has written other books about slavery, and he has definitely done his research so that the books are accurate.
As I took a closer look at the illustrations, I noticed the pictures were laid out in a way in which they were always given their own page or even a two-page spread. The size of the pictures made them more powerful as well. Although this was a chapter book, it was illustrated as if it were a picture book. One of the reviewers on Amazon also pointed out that the text might be more appropriate for teens due to the violence, threat of rape, and groping. Therefore, I would definitely use this text in the form of a read aloud with selections marked in advance. I agree with you that it is worth sharing with students, even if it is just the pictures alone. You could scan in the pictures and show them through a projector, if you have the capabilities. Overall, I think this is a great multicultural book. It paints a detailed picture of what slavery was like. The story included characters within a cultural group and depicted their interactions with another cultural group. These interactions were characteristic of the cultural issue of slavery. If slaves tried to escape, whipping was an actual consequence. One part I thought was uncharacteristic was that the Old African was able to have separate housing from the rest of the slaves. Why was this allowed? Had he had good behavior and earned special treatment? Or was the master truly afraid of him and didn’t want him close to the house? The author writes, “He wouldn’t live in what they called the slave quarters. He was nobody’s slave and he refused to live among slaves.” Would he have been allowed to refuse?
I liked that you looked up reviews and how you grappled with the genre of The Man Who Walked between the Towers. What do you think the theme was of this book. More discussion here would enhance your reviews. What about the genres for the traditional literature? I just learned that the original Rapunzel was edited to make it more appropriate for children. I think there is an allusion in the story to sex and perhaps the prince's visits were more than what they appear!! Also, I liked that you looked up on Wikapoedia- but remember we cannot verify its accuracy. Still it gives general info that may or may not stimulate questions. Need a bit more here on illustrations- especially Julius Lester's work. Overall, however, addressed important issues and shared personal responses.
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
ReplyDeleteBy Mordicai Gerstein (Published in 2003)
I really enjoyed reading this picture book for many different reasons. The first reason being that it is based on a true story so it was exciting to learn about who walked between the Twin Towers and how they were able to do it. The big question that was in my mind the whole time I was reading it was, “Is he going to be successful and walk between the towers?” It kept me turning the pages and was very suspenseful. Another thing that I really enjoyed was the illustrations. They were very colorful, and they definitely enhanced the text because of the expressions on the character’s faces, and the setting. I also thought it was really neat how some of the pages unfolded into a larger picture. This really showed how tall the towers were and the point of view of the people who watched Philippe Petit walk on a line across the towers. The illustrator definitely used lines to his advantage because I was always following the lines in the pictures to the top of the tower.
The genre of the book is a little unclear to me because it could be a couple of different things. I looked it up online and on one site it said this book is a biography, and another site said it was historical fiction, and a third site said it was realistic fiction. I think it is technically a biography because it is a true story. What do you think? I don’t know how “multicultural” this book is because it mostly revolves around an event rather than a culture. The main character is French, but it doesn’t talk about his background at all.
I read this book to my students yesterday and their response was amazing! Their faces lit up when they discovered that he actually completed his goal. I had the students write down what they were thinking as I was reading this story, and they all said they felt so nervous about his falling down, and they were so excited when he made it across. The author really makes the reader feel for the main character even though he was “technically” doing something he wasn’t supposed to. I think it is so important for the main character to be believable so the students can connect to him/her and relate to the story. Before reading the story, I did give my students some background information on the Twin Towers because some of them did not know what happened to them, and I feel that they need to understand the importance of the towers before they read the story to gain a better appreciation for the book.
I really enjoyed reading The Man Who Walked Between the Towers. I was really shocked that he was going string a tight rope between the towers and actually proceed to walk across it. To me this seemed a little unrealistic I thought immediately, What if he falls? On the other hand, I suppose if you are a tight rope walker and you can walk on a rope that is one hundred feet in the air successfully, then the height of the rope must not make that much of a difference. The story was humorous to me because of Philippe’s comfort when on the tight rope. He was able to taunt the police by dancing across the rope, but not obeying their orders. This story also made me feel proud of the character’s accomplishments and in the end I felt sad being left with the last line of the story, “Now the towers are gone.” If you were not alive or old enough to remember the tragedy of September 11, you might not have had the same feeling as the story closed. Instead you would have been left wondering, where did the towers go? What happened to them?
ReplyDeleteWith respect to the genre, I don’t believe that it is a biography. A biography tells a person’s life story. This picture book only tells a snap shot of Philippe Petit’s life. This inclines me to think that it would be historical fiction. It replicates something that really did happen in a narrative format.
I checked Wikipedia for the accuracy of the story and it was incredibly accurate. The part where he is lying down on the wire, I had a hard time believing was possible. However, it was documented on Wikipedia. The thickness of the rope was different in the picture book in comparison to online, but not by much. The book said the rope was 5/8 of an inch and the encyclopedia said ¾ of an inch. These are both very close in thickness.
The watercolor paintings in the book are amazing. I also especially liked the pages that flipped out. Kids will enjoy these as well. They usually like things that pop out or flip open in a text. The flip out page with the towers really helps to emphasis just how high the towers really were. In addition, the illustration on page one shows the vast height in comparison to all the other buildings. The author was also very creative with his perspectives in his illustrations. You were able to see what things looked like from the tightrope walkers point of view and from the ground vantage point.
I agree with you that it was hard to believe a man could walk on a tight rope and not fall off. I had to convince my students that this story was true because they can't imagine anyone being able to do that!
ReplyDeleteI spent a lot of time reading the reviews on Amazon about this book and I could not find one that was negative about this book. All of them said essentially the same thing which was that this book was appropriate for children and it celebrates a brave man who walked between the towers. A lot of people talked about how they bought this book for their children to talk about how important the towers were, and to talk about what happened to them. The last two pages were definitely painful to read knowing what happened, and I think it really reaches people who witnessed the towers falling first hand or on the news. It might be different for kids reading it today who did not witness this event, but it is still a powerful ending to the story.
The climax of this book was definitely natural because he made it across the towers, multiple times. My students laughed when the judge sentenced him to perform for children in the park. They wanted to know if he was still performing so we did a little research project to learn more about him, and they looked him up online. It was wonderful seeing children respond to this book because it was so fun to watch how he accomplished this feat.
Table of Contents
ReplyDeleteTitle: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
Author: Mordicai Gerstein
Picture Book
Caldecott Medal Book Award in 2004
I like that you shared the book with your students. I might try that for one of the upcoming books we have to read. I agree with you that there are not any multicultural connections in this text.
ReplyDeleteI went to the following link: http://www.uleth.ca/edu/currlab/handouts/genres.html and found the definition of biography to include: biographical fiction. Maybe the genre is biography. I’m not sure either. Scholastic codes it as autobiography/ biography so I am going to evaluate the book based on this. The character in the story is interesting to read about. The book was captivating due to the characters amazing accomplishment. An average person is not talented enough to ride a unicycle, juggle fiery torches, and walk across a tight rope. Therefore, having all these talents makes him multifaceted. The story contained a lot of detail about carrying out the plan to walk between the buildings and the process of securing the tight rope. Due to the elaborate illustrations, there was no need for the author to use a lot of words to describe the setting. The pictures portrayed New York City beautifully.
Rapunzel: A Groovy Fairy Tale by Lynn Roberts and illustrated by David Roberts.
ReplyDeleteThis story, based on the story of Rapunzel, was definitely a light-hearted story about a girl living in the city with her evil Aunt Esme. It takes place in the 1970’s, and music plays an important role in the story. I would not say that this is a good book for me because it did not have a lot of depth to it, and I didn’t really get into the story, but I do think that students will like reading this book because some parts are funny, and the illustrations are appealing to them. Another reason I think they will enjoy this book is because Aunt Esme works as a mean cafeteria lady, and the students can relate to the school aspect of the story. They may even have an aunt that they don’t particularly like, or they may know someone like Aunt Esme. Students generally enjoy books where good triumphs over evil.
The genre of this book is traditional literature because it is based on the old story of Rapunzel who was locked away in a tower and is eventually rescued by a prince who climbs her hair. I do not feel that this book has a multicultural aspect to it, although the setting is the 1970’s when music had a huge influence on people, and the characters are dressed from the 70’s. This book is not rich in cultural details, and it does seem more superficial with the main focus being entertainment for children.
As a piece of literature, the plot seemed to flow and there was a natural climax at the end. I don’t know how believable the main character was because she didn’t seem to be upset that she had to stay in a room all day and couldn’t see the outside world. There was a romantic aspect to the book which is something the reader can more easily relate to. I can also imagine students feeling bad for Rapunzel because she was lost in the streets when she escaped, and then feeling happy that the evil Aunt Esme had to walk up the stairs every day because she couldn’t climb Rapunzel’s hair. Personally, I don’t think the theme of this book inspired hope because the problem isn’t one that a lot of people can relate to. Most people aren’t kept locked away in an apartment, however good triumphs over evil in the end and Rapunzel and Roger end up together which is common in almost all traditional literature.
The illustrations enhance the book because they are mostly lively pictures with lots of color that really reflect the 1970’s colors. There are features that are exaggerated in the story such as the character’s noses, and eyes. There was one illustration where Rapunzel and Roger are in her room which is decorated with posters and music, and I believe that this really emphasizes the importance of music and reflects the lifestyle of the 70’s. Also, in all of the pictures with Aunt Esme, there is a crow which symbolizes evil and darkness. I didn’t notice this until the second time looking at the illustrations.
Table of Contents
ReplyDeleteTitle: Rapunzel: A Groovy Fairy Tale
Author: Lynn Roberts
Illustrated by: David Roberts
Picture Book - Traditional Literature
Copyright: 2004
I thought this was a great story because it had a happy ending. I was able to relate to this story because I am at the point in my life where I am happy being single, but I am waiting patiently for prince charming to appear. I think the book did have a few messages. One message is that you should make the best of whatever situation you are in. Another message being that good things happen to people who wait. The story is an example of the saying, “What goes around comes around.” Aunt Esme had it coming to her. All the awful things she did to Rapunzel she had to pay for in the end, by having to walk up hundreds of stairs to get to the apartment.
ReplyDeleteChildren might easily relate to this book if they have a parent who is overprotective who doesn’t allow them to do the things they wish to do. Although I don’t know if a child would be so happy about this, as Rapunzel was in the story. The difference is that Rapunzel didn’t really know what she was missing since she was always locked in the apartment. Given that the story was traditional literature, based on a fairy tale, it had many aspects that were unrealistic, but fitting to this genre. Rapunzel was locked up in her home, never allowed to go out. Nowadays if a child were locked in their home for an extended period of time a parent could go to jail. Also, a person climbing another person’s hair is not realistic. The modern day twist to the story was interesting. I liked how it took place in a city implying that regular people can live happily ever after, not just princess and princesses who grow up in a castle. The pictures really compliment the text. Aunt Esme’s illustration emphasizes just how repulsive of a person she really is.
This book did not contain any multicultural considerations. As you mentioned it did very creatively portray the era of the 70’s with clothing style, music, and artifacts. The characters were wearing bell-bottoms and platform shoes. The music was played using a record player. There was a Rubik’s cube and a lava lamp in the illustrations, which are both characteristic of this time.
After looking on Amazon at the review for this book, there were only four of them posted. They were all positive reviews of this book, and they all discuss how this book is interesting and fun. A few of them talk about how this book really reminds them of the 1970’s and the illustrations were comforting to them. All of the reviews were parents who bought this book for their children, and they all mention that their children love reading this book. I do personally think that this book would be more appealing to people who lived during the 1970’s because it offers them more connections to the story and it is very nostalgic.
ReplyDeleteI would use this book in my classroom when we learn about traditional literature and folk tales because it is a cute story that my students may enjoy hearing. There is not a lot of depth, but the students may be able to make connections and predictions as they read this book. They will probably enjoy the colorful illustrations, and it is a good piece to read to them to teach them about the themes of good versus evil which is a common theme in most traditional literature books. I would probably follow up this book by reading Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and other classics so that the students could compare how the books are similar and different. Comparing and contrasting texts is a skill we use a lot in our school, and this would be a fun way to get the kids to notice how these books compare. Do you think you would use this book in your classroom? How would you use it?
I am going to post about The Old African because I am going to Massachusetts for the weekend! I will respond to what you write either tonight or tomorrow. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThe Old African written by Julius Lester and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
ReplyDeleteCopyright 2005
This book completely took me by surprise because it was nothing like I thought it would be. By doing a picture walk of the book, and looking at the title and the front and back cover, I was able to figure out that this multicultural book was based on slavery. It wasn’t until I began reading this book that I realized how deep and moving it really was. There were even times when it became difficult to read because the words evoked so much emotion. It was so hard to read about how the slaves were treated, and about what happened to the little boy who was whipped almost until death. It was even confusing at times because I didn’t understand how the Old African had special powers to help and communicate with other slaves.
I would consider this book a chapter book because it is divided into four sections and it is fairly long. The genre of this book is fiction because even though it is based on actual events, there is an element of fantasy throughout the story. This is definitely a multicultural book because it is based on African Americans who had to endure slavery. It is rich in cultural details, and it provides in-depth treatment of the issue of slavery. It does not “fill a quota” because the African Americans were the basis of the book. This book encourages the understanding of common bonds of humanity because it shows how important it was for slaves to bond together even though horrible things were happening to them.
As I was looking at the literary criteria, this book definitely had an overlying question which was, “Do these slaves make it out of slavery and become free?” The climax of the story did seem natural because the slaves finally made it to the ocean to walk to Africa. Obviously this could not really happen, but it is based on a legend of slaves who tried to walk to Africa from Macon, Georgia. The characters definitely seemed real because of their emotions, and how they dealt with the things that happened to them. Also, I cared about the characters because it hurt me to hear about what happened to them and how their families were separated. The characters did fit into the setting which made the true elements of the story believable.
The illustrations in this book were absolutely amazing. You could sense the emotion from the pictures by looking at the slaves’ faces and reactions to what was happening to them. The pictures definitely reinforce text and extend the plot because of the detail in the pictures. Some of the pictures were hard to figure out because there were no distinct lines, and the colors blended together, but if you look at the picture as a whole, you can see what is happening. A lot of dark and ominous colors were used which reflects the mood of the story. Although the pictures didn’t reflect another point of view of the story, they establish the mood of the story.
I think I would use this book in the classroom in the same way. Kids love to see the different variations of fairytales. This year we read the story titled Cendrillon and compared it to some of the other versions of Cinderella such as: Yeh Shen, The Rough-Face Girl, and Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters. It might be interesting to compare Rapunzel A Groovy Fairy Tale to other versions. It reinforces students’ reading comprehension through compare and contrast. The process also gives students the opportunity to go back and take a closer look at the illustrations and parts of the story. Far too often kids miss out on the gorgeous illustrations in stories because they are read aloud to the class and the children cannot see them. Or they see the pictures for a few seconds and they never get to go back to them.
ReplyDeleteThe author of this book, Lynn Roberts, also wrote a book titled Praise for Cinderella: An Art Deco Love Story. I will add this to my collection when I have students compare versions of Cinderella in the future. While searching online I also found a book titled, Letters from Rapunzel, by Sara Lewis Holmes. The girl on the cover is pictured with blond hair. It might be interesting to compare that one as well. It seemed to be even more modern than Rapunzel: A Groovy Fairy Tale.
Table of Contents:
ReplyDeleteTitle: The Old African
Author: Julius Lester
Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney
Date of Publication: 2005
Category: Multicultural
Genre: Historical Fiction
This book is truly amazing. I really like this book because it invoked a lot of emotion. I felt badly for the characters in the story as I read and I hoped they would escape their master. I agree with you that it was a very deep book. At first I was also confused about the Old African being able to hear the thoughts of others and vice versa.
ReplyDeleteSome of the elements of the story were based on fact while others were based on fantasy. There was a great deal of spirituality throughout the book, which I believe is representative of the African culture. This spiritually turned their desires into reality. The majority of the book was very painful to read due to the way the slaves were treated. It is very sad that one human being could treat another in this way. The African people did not do anything to deserve such treatment. They were minding their own business when they were attacked in their village in the middle of the night by another tribe. It was a relief that the slaves were able triumph in the end over their master and make it back to Africa safely. To me this book represents slavery as a whole. The ocean being the long distance we have traveled over the years to get to where we are now. The walk to freedom in the story was a long one, as was the abolition of slavery.
The language in the story was extremely rich and detailed. The author states, “I sought to make the language as visually rich as I could, more so than I might have otherwise.” The descriptions included literary devices such as similes and metaphors. One example was, “But Riley’s arms were as heavy as stones and he could not turn his body.” Lester describes the slave, “His face was as expressionless as tree bark.” Although the language was very descriptive I felt as though some parts weren’t appropriate for elementary school children. The matter being discussed in this book is a serious event and I don’t know if it would be best to read the book in its entirety. I might choose to read parts of the book as read aloud to accompany a unit on slavery. I think it would be better suited for the upper grades, possibly sixth grade or above as the language at times can be inappropriate. Would you still read it, but substitute other words in place of graphic words? Do you think it is better suited for more mature students?
After giving it some thought, I would probably use only a few pages of the book to share with my students during our slavery unit. Not every page has a violent scene on it, and describes the monstrosities that occurred during this time. I would definitely have to substitute some vocabulary, but it would get the message across to my students. The pictures are also very useful teaching tools because they convey so much and the students would be able to get a better idea about slavery based on the illustrations in the book. I also agree with you that the similes in the book were really amazing. I would probably share them with my students as well since we learn about how similes enhance literature all year long!
ReplyDeleteThe review of this book on Amazon talk about the "stunning imagery" of the illustrations and the "human emotion" that is conveyed in the text AND the illustrations. Most of them are summaries of the book with personal reactions to this text. Most people wrote about how it made slavery more real to them because it is a foreign concept to people who were not alive during this time. All of the reactions were positive.
I did some research on Julius Lester and I think this story meant a lot to him because he is an African American man. He has written other books about slavery, and he has definitely done his research so that the books are accurate.
As I took a closer look at the illustrations, I noticed the pictures were laid out in a way in which they were always given their own page or even a two-page spread. The size of the pictures made them more powerful as well. Although this was a chapter book, it was illustrated as if it were a picture book.
ReplyDeleteOne of the reviewers on Amazon also pointed out that the text might be more appropriate for teens due to the violence, threat of rape, and groping. Therefore, I would definitely use this text in the form of a read aloud with selections marked in advance. I agree with you that it is worth sharing with students, even if it is just the pictures alone. You could scan in the pictures and show them through a projector, if you have the capabilities.
Overall, I think this is a great multicultural book. It paints a detailed picture of what slavery was like. The story included characters within a cultural group and depicted their interactions with another cultural group. These interactions were characteristic of the cultural issue of slavery. If slaves tried to escape, whipping was an actual consequence. One part I thought was uncharacteristic was that the Old African was able to have separate housing from the rest of the slaves. Why was this allowed? Had he had good behavior and earned special treatment? Or was the master truly afraid of him and didn’t want him close to the house? The author writes, “He wouldn’t live in what they called the slave quarters. He was nobody’s slave and he refused to live among slaves.” Would he have been allowed to refuse?
I liked that you looked up reviews and how you grappled with the genre of The Man Who Walked between the Towers. What do you think the theme was of this book. More discussion here would enhance your reviews.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the genres for the traditional literature? I just learned that the original Rapunzel was edited to make it more appropriate for children. I think there is an allusion in the story to sex and perhaps the prince's visits were more than what they appear!!
Also, I liked that you looked up on Wikapoedia- but remember we cannot verify its accuracy. Still it gives general info that may or may not stimulate questions. Need a bit more here on illustrations- especially Julius Lester's work. Overall, however, addressed important issues and shared personal responses.