Story Time

BIBLIOGRAPHY Zelinsky, P. (1986). Rumpelstiltskin. (First Edition). Dutton Books for Young Readers. ISBN-10:  0525442650 PLOT SUMMARY Paul O. Zelinsky (1998 Caldecott winner) retells the classic fairytale of Rumpelstiltskin, staying true to the original tale from the Brothers Grimm collection in 1812. Rumpelstiltskin is an intriguing tale about a young daughter who was brought before the king in consequence of her father’s misleading promise that she “could spin gold out of straw”. The greedy king immediately locks her in a room full of straw demanding she turn everything into gold by morning time or she shall surely die. The girl is hopeless until a sneaky little man offers to help her in return of a reward. The same event repeats itself for two more nights until the daughter has nothing left to offer but her first born child with the king. The day arrives when she has to give up her only child, but only with one condition, she has to guess the little man’s name and she wil

BIBLIOGRAPHY Seibert, P. and Elena, O. 2001. The Three Little Pigs. (Keepsake Story Series). Brighter Child. Carson Dellosa Education. ISBN-13: 978157768374 PLOT SUMMARY Patricia Seibert recreates a beautiful version of The Three Little Pigs with the help of interesting and delightful illustrations by Horacio Elena. The story is a cute, heart-warming, and fun adaptation of The Three Little Pigs. Starting with the traditional opening line, “Once upon a time” the author maintains the same order of events but adds a few modern adjustments to the 1904 classical story by Frederick Warne & Co. The three little pigs want to leave home to become independent and explore the world outside their parent’s house. They each end up building a home of their choice using materials they find most convenient. Each pig judges each other’s choices, but when a big bad wolf comes along and blows their houses down, the strongest home, build out of bricks, survives. The three little pigs live ha

BIBLIOGRAPHY Wiesner, D. (2001). The Three Pigs . (Caldecott Honor Book). ISBN-10:  0618007016 Clarion Books. PLOT SUMMARY David Wiesner shakes up the traditional 1904 tale of The Three Pigs with shocking and surprising twists and unexpected events different from Frederick Warne & Co.  The story starts with the typical “Once upon a time” as they introduce the first little pig. The first and second pig’s houses, the popular straw house and stick house, are blown away by the mean wolf. But just as they are about to introduce the third pig and his brick home, there is a shift in the story and the illustrations. The pigs have been “blown out” of the story and the pages of the book seem to detach. The pigs are trying to find their way back to the story, but in doing so, they come across other fairytale stories and characters. As a result, they befriend a cat and a dragon. After several distractions and complications, they end up finding their way back to home and bring thei

BIBLIOGRAPHY Kimmel, E. and Lloyd, M. (1993). THE GINGERBREAD MAN. (First Edition). ISBN-10:  0823408248. PLOT SUMMARY THE GINGERBREAD MAN is a fun, highly energetic, and witty adaptation of the classic gingerbread man folktale  from St. Nicholas Magazine’s issue in 1875 . The story begins with an old couple deciding to make gingerbread. They decorate it and soon it comes to life and runs out the door. As his journey through the farm progresses, he yells out his famous words, “I’ll run and run as fast as I can. You can’t catch me. I’m the gingerbread man!” to every animal he encounters. He outwits a pig, dog, cow, and horse until he reaches a river. A smart fox offers help to cross the river but as the water gets deeper, the Gingerbread Man has to climb higher and higher on his back until he stands right on the fox’s snout. In one snap, the fox swallows the Gingerbread Man whole. The story ends with the legend of the Gingerbread Man coming to life whenever gingerbread is ba

BIBLIOGRAPHY Mora, P. and Colon, R. (2005). Dona Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman With a Great Big Heart. (Big Edition). Knopf Books for Young Readers. ISBN-10:  0375823379. PLOT SUMMARY Pat Mora entices young readers in a creative, imaginative, cultural, and meaningful story about a giant woman in Dona Flor: A Tall Tale About a Giant Woman With a Great Big Heart . The story incorporates bilingual elements to capture the interest of children. The story is about a giant woman, respectfully called Dona Flor, which has grown an immense height due to her mother’s love and care. Dona Flor has learned to live with her unique height despite struggling with her differences as a child. Once she became an adult, people loved and respected her because she had proved to have a giant heart. Dona Flor cared for nature, animals, and humans. Her language was universal. She could communicate with all types of animals, and nature was on her favor. Everything was beautiful in her world u

BIBLIOGRAPHY Lowrey, J and Tenggren, G. 1942. The Poky Little Puppy . (First Edition). Golden Books. ISBN-10:  9780307021342 PLOT SUMMARY Janette S. Lowrey develops a cute, fun, and sweet children’s book, The Poky Little Puppy . The main characters are five little puppies that are adventurous and curious, but include one rule-breaker. It all starts when the puppies dig a whole through the fence and decide to explore the “wide, wide, world”. They are amazed by their surroundings, but there is always one puppy that ends up straying away from the group. The poky little puppy doesn’t like to follow the rules and is always cheating the others from their desserts. He doesn’t pay attention to the signs by the owner to stop digging holes in the fence. At the end, the poky little puppy learns his lesson when he is left with no dessert for being a bad puppy while the rest go to bed with their tummies full and happy. CRITICAL ANALYSIS Illustrator, Gustaff Tenggren, creates a beau

BIBLIOGRAPHY Cronin, D. and Lewin, B. 2000. Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type. (First Edition). Atheneum Books for Young Readers . ISBN-10:  9780689832130 PLOT SUMMARY Doreen Cronin creates a witty and comical children’s fictional story in Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type. The setting takes place on a farm (a common place for children’s books), but there is an unexpected twist when the animals go on strike. The conflict arises when the cows get their hooves on an old typewriter in the barn. The farmer is infuriated by the cow’s notes with daily requests to be provided with electric blankets for the cold nights. The cows and chickens go on strike! The farmer simply wants eggs and milk from his barn animals without taking consideration of their needs. Both the barn animals and the farmer are irritated with each other’s demands which makes it difficult to arrive at a conclusion. As a result, the “neutral” farm animal, the duck, proposes an ultimatum to serve as a solution for a

BIBLIOGRAPHY Mattick, L. and Blackall, S. 2015. Finding Winnie The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear. (First Edition). Little Brown Books for Young Readers. ISBN-10:  0316324906 PLOT SUMMARY In Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear, Lindsay Mattick establishes the true origin of our beloved character “Winnie the Pooh” in a children’s book. A loving mother genuinely reveals her family’s past and association to “Winnie” through a bedtime story for her son Cole. An account of Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian in Winnipeg, forced to leave his hometown during a war, buys a cub during one of the train stops. The bear is named “Winnie” in memory of his hometown. Winnie soon becomes part of the military family and trains with the soldiers. When battle time in France approaches, Cole is forced to make the sacrifice of leaving Winnie at the local Zoo. The friendly bear soon makes a new friend called Christopher Robin Milne and his father starts writing