Dr. Seuss Author/Illustrator Handout

Blog #30

The Sound of Kwanzaa

Written by: Dimitrea Tokunbo

Illustrated by: Lisa Cohen

Scholastic, Inc.

2009

26 pages

            I chose this book to learn more about the holiday, Kwanzaa.  This book is about an African American family who is celebrating Kwanzaa.  Each day they light another candle and say a guiding principle.  The principles are unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.  On the last day seven candles will by lit.  Kwanzaa is an African American celebration that was started by Dr. Karenga in 1966.  It is based on the Swahili word kwanza, which means ‘first fruits’.  It is celebrated for seven days from December 26^th until January 1^st.  The author put Swahili words into the text to introduce some of the language spoken during Kwanzaa as well.

            Lisa Cohen illustrated this book.  The artwork appears to have been completed using acrylic paint and possibly collage.  Cohen used double=page spread throughout the book.  She also used very formal text placement to make the book look very professional.  I love the use of bold, eye-catching colors.  The family in the book is portrayed going about their daily lives such as riding the bus to school, hanging out in their home, painting, graduating, and celebrating Kwanzaa at their dining room table.  Each picture goes along with the guiding principle for the day.  I like how the pictures explain the text.

            This book is appropriate for students from Kindergarten until fourth grade.  This book has simple language and pictures for young ages to understand.  I would use this in my classroom to talk about the different holidays people celebrate during the winter during Christmas time.  I could also use this book as an example of a cultural tradition.  Explaining cultural differences to young children helps them to understand instead of be prejudice later on in life.  Also, when studying different languages spoken across the globe, Swahili would be one to think about!  I like this book because it is a fun, brief story with real information about Kwanzaa and how it started on the last pages of the book. Great option for handling the upcoming holidays!

Blog #29

If the World Were a Village: A Book about the World’s People

Written by: David J. Smith

Illustrated by: Shelagh Armstrong

Kids Can Press, Ltd.

2002

32 pages

            I chose this book because of the content of the book.  This book is a multicultural book in that it forces the reader to see other countries, cultures, religions, and races as a part of the same global community.  The author chose to share statistics about the world as if the globe were shrunk down to a small village of one hundred people.  Throughout the course of the book, the author compared nationalities, languages, age, religion, food, air and water conditions, school and literacy, money and possessions, and electricity that would represent the global community.  Smith wrote this book to point out other cultures and ways of life and how that if we know our neighbors and how they live, it will lead to a better understanding of them and ultimately lead to peace.

            Shelagh Armstrong illustrated this book.  The artwork was rendered using acrylic paint.  Armstrong uses double-page spreads throughout the book with formal text placement.  She illustrates many races, clothing styles, types of housing, transportation, livestock, and food to represent the theme of other cultures living all together in the same small village of one-hundred people.  I love her use of bright, bold colors of red, blue, green, and yellow.  It makes me think of other cultures around the world.

            This book is appropriate for students starting in third grade.  At this age they will be able to understand the concepts in the book and be able to imagine the circumstances of others around the globe.  Older children would especially enjoy this book because it is very eye-opening considering statistics.  I would use this in my classroom during a geography lesson to talk about different people groups across the world.  I could also use this book when teaching about statistics.  Also, this would be a good way to introduce a unit on world religions.  I like this book because it causes children to think of other people outside of the United States who struggle to fund food, water, and shelter for each day.

Blog #28

Kibitzers and Fools: Tales My Zayda Todl Me

Written and illustrated by: Simms Taback

Penguin Group

2005

42 pages

            I chose this book because of the funny illustration with the polish man dancing on the front.  I just knew it was a multi-cultural book by Simms Taback and I had to pick it up!  This book is written about the stories that Simms Taback’s Polish grandfather, or Zayda, told him when he was young.  His grandfather always told stories with a moral lesson in the end as well as to share new Yiddish words with young Taback.  A kibitzer is a smart-alec or know-it-all.  So this book is really titled: Smart-Alecs and Fools.  Taback shares that over fifty Yiddish words are in the English dictionary and we use them all the time without knowing them.  Throughout the short stories told there are Yiddish words that are defined for the reader.  Each short story always has a moral to learn.

            The illustrator is the author, Simms Taback.  Taback’s illustrations are well-known and easy to recognize from far away.  I walked past this book in the library and I immediately turned around to pick up the book because I recognized the artwork.  Taback appears to have used colored pencils and collage to render the artwork.  He uses both single and double-page spreads throughout the book along with formal text placement.  The illustrations show Polish characters in traditional clothing and Jewish yamakas.  The culture of Yiddish-speakers is illustrated.

            This book is appropriate for students in grades first until sixth grade.  The book can be read aloud to younger grades and it will make them laugh.  Older grades will be able to navigate the text and understand the cultural differences brought out by Taback.  I would use this book to talk about Jewish and Polish culture.  I could also talk about the different forms of storytelling and passing on wisdom from generation to generation in different cultures.  Older children would like learning to speak the Yiddish words and how to pronounce them.  I like this book because of the humorous illustrations and funny story morals.

Blog #27

Cendrillon: A Caribbean Cinderella
Written by: Robert D. San Souci
Illustrated by: Brain Pinkney

Aladdin Paperbacks

2002

40 pages

Multicultural

            I chose this book after looking through the traditional literature section at the library.  This is the story of the traditional story of Cinderella that is told in a different culture.  The Caribbean culture portrays Cinderella as the character Cendrillon.  The story has a very similar plot line to the traditional story, but there are some key differences as well.  The story is narrated in French creole language by the character that plays the role of the traditional story’s fairy godmother.  Her name is Nannin’.  Nannin’ begins the story when she was a small orphan girl.  Before her mother died, she gave Nannin’ a magical wand that she could only use for a short time on someone she loved.  Nannin’ held onto the wand until she was old.  Nannin’ was a nurse to a very sickly woman who had a baby.  To thank her, she allowed Nannin’ to be baby Cendrillon’s godmother.  The woman soon died and her husband re-married to a nasty woman who eventually made Cendrillon into a servant in their home.  One day when Cendrillon had grown, Nannin’ heard she wanted to go to a ball.  Nannin’ used her wand to change a breadfruit and rodents into a horse-drawn carriage. She also used her wand to change Cendrillon’s ragged clothes into a gown and slippers.  At the ball, the rich handsome man named Paul fell in love with Cendrillon.  When the clock struck twelve, Cendrillon had to run away and left her slipper.  Paul eventually found her by fitting that lost slipper into her foot and telling her she was beautiful despite her clothes and magic.

            This book is illustrated by Brain Pinkney.  The artwork was rendered using scratchboard, luma dyes, gouache, and oil paints.  The scratchboard illustrations are very detailed with small lines throughout the pictures.  Pinkney used many bright colors such as deep blues, greens, yellows, ad purples that remind me of the Caribbean culture and landscape.  The pictures show action and movement.  I love how the scenes perfectly describe the action going on in the text of the story.  The illustrator used both single page and double page spreads with formal text placement, making this story a mixture between traditional literature and multicultural literature.

            This book is appropriate for students ages fourth grade to sixth grade.  The vernacular used would trip-up younger readers and confuse their reading process. Older readers will know the traditional story of Cinderella and be able to compare and contrast the stories easily.  Younger children in second or third grade would love having this book read aloud to them.  This book could be used in a lesson about other cultures or languages.  I like this book because of the French creole language intertwined into a story similar, but different enough from a traditional story.  This book will really draw the attention of readers.  This book has won no awards.

Blog #26

Elizabeth Leads the Way: Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Right to Vote

Written by: Tanya Lee Stone

Illustrated by: Rebecca Gibbon

Henry Holt and Company, LLC

2008

30 pages

            I chose this book because of the coming election.  This is a nonfiction story about the life of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the right for women to vote.  Elizabeth was a small girl when she heard someone say that boys had an easier life than girls.  In the late 1800s, women were not allowed to own property, to have money, or vote.  She was infuriated by the treatment of women in the country that proudly gave freedom to “all men” by the Constitution of the United States.  Elizabeth went to a women’s college and eventually married an abolitionist with similar views.  She did have children and she cooked, cleaned, and did laundry.  But she did not like it!  Stanton made a speech in New York that sparked the nations fire for women’s right to vote.  Sadly, Stanton died eighteen years before her dream of women’s rights became a reality with the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.

            The artwork for this book was created by Rebecca Gibbon.  She rendered the illustrations using gouache and colored pencils on paper.  The text is printed in China on acid-free paper.  The illustrator used both double-page and single-page spreads throughout.  She uses both formal and informal text placement throughout the book.  The illustrations contain a lot of negative white space that is used to draw the reader’s attention to the bold blues, reds, and greens of the illustrations.  I love how Gibbon captured the essence of the women's clothing of the time period.

            This book is appropriate for any age group.  Younger children will especially be able to understand the simple language used, but older children will understand the concepts of voting and women’s rights.  This book would be great to use now that the election is over to talk about the importance of voting.  Also, older grades studying the Constitution could read this book to discover more about the Nineteenth Amendment.  I would use this book to talk about prejudice and unfair attitudes about people.  This would be a great example to show that the Civil Right’s Movement is not the only instance of discrimination in the United States’ history.