The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieska

Title: The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales

Author: Jon Scieszka, Illustrator: Lane Smith

Genre: Fantasy

Awards/Honors: Caldecott Honor Award

Publisher: Viking Books

Copyright: 1992

Age/Grade Level: Mostly for Kindergarten through 2nd, but I think kids of ALL ages will love this book! :)

Basic Overview: The setting is in the book itself. The characters, including the narrator, react to one another to make the story come together. They are very emotional characters: the mean giant, the glory-hungry Hen, and the cautious narrator. As well, there is the Stinky Cheese man who you can practically smell through the book, the sly fox, and all the other important animals of the stories. They are all in conflict with one another, trying to steal their own spot of glory in the book. The exposition begins with the introduction, then moves into the rising action being the telling of stories (we see the true beginning as the table of contents are forgotten), then the climax begins when the giant arrives to take over; however, the stinky cheese man saves the day with the falling action story leading to the conclusion of the giant eating the glory-hungry hen. The theme is hard to find, but perhaps like The Three Pigs, it is about finding another way of getting out of a sticky situation. That theme covers many of the smaller stories in between as well.

What makes it quality literature: This book does not overly teach or moralize, encompasses poetic language, and all of the stories, characters, and main plot come together to make a whole story. By those standards, this is quality literature, and I know kids will love to read because of this book. Therefore, I book that ‘will be’ timeless is quality literature.

Is it ESOL Speaker Oriented?: Read aloud properly, I believe ESOL students will get a kick out of this. Socially, I believe this book will help ESOL students connect with the other students by just getting a chance to laugh together. Plus, once again, those pictures are an awesome way of producing visuals during the story for those students. I mean to say, the silly and “fairly-stupid” voice of the story is reflected in the artwork presented in the book. Even ESOL students can see the difference in voice through pictures.

How can it be used in the classroom?: Read aloud passage: Page 30, The Tortoise and The Hair, The Tortoise is a very slow animal, and the rabbit makes a deal with him that his hair can grow faster than the tortoise can walk in a race. In the end, the tortoise ran, and the rabbit grew his hair. Assuredly, this is “not” the end…

How can parents use this book?: Just like The Three Pigs, this book is great for helping a child find joy in reading, and possibly, their choice genre or style of writing. Do they prefer whacky, out-of-the-ordinary comedies? Or maybe they would prefer a true story? Use this book as a spring-board into finding what your child loves. Read aloud WITH them, admiring the pictures and discussing what were the best parts.

Accessibility: Easy – Such a popular book is easily found at the library or bookstore. Find it now at Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Stinky-Cheese-Other-Fairly-Stupid/dp/067084487X/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1235696922&sr=8-1#

Kiddie L. Critic

The Three Pigs by David Wiesner

1. Title: The Three Pigs

2. Author and Illustrator: David Wiesner

3. Genre: Fantasy

4. Honors/Awards: The Caldecott Medal

5. Publisher: Clarion Books

6. Copyright: 2001

7. Grade Level: K-2nd

8. Basic Overview: The setting occurs within many different children’s nursery rhymes. The main characters are the three pigs who are made alive by leaving their original story and escaping into another, causing more characters to come to life (such as a dragon and the cat with the fiddle). These pigs help save the dragon, are thankful for their new found friends and welcome them to their home in the original story. There is conflict between characters in the story: the wolf and the pigs, the dragon and the knight. The plot begins with the normal story of The Three Little Pigs, but reaches the rising action once the pigs realize they can leave the story. The climax is hit when the cat finds the original story with the brick house, moving to the falling action of getting rid of the wolf with the dragon, and resulting to a soup party. Lastly, the theme that struck me the most was “finding a different way out of situations.”

9. What makes it quality literature?: This book is a piece of quality literature because of the beautiful and fun illustrations. Children will really get into this book. It is a high fantasy book because of the total “other world” the pigs find within the nursery rhymes. It covers these qualities: expands awareness by putting children in another perspective, doesn’t overly teach or moralize, words have a poetic feel to them, has integrity (makes a satisfying whole), and lastly, shows originality.

10. English Speaker of Other Languages (ESOL) Oriented?: This is great for ESOL children because it does not hold stereotypes, for it is all about animals in nursery rhymes, and it has extremely vibrant pictures which the students use to follow the story. It also introduces nursery rhymes they may not have heard before, but will eventually.

11. How it can be used in the classroom: A good unit this book would be good for would be a comparing and contrasting of mixed up nursery rhymes. This could be a specific lesson on Three Little Pig stories while another portion of the unit could have a lesson on Cinderella stories. It is useful for letting children see the creative idea of each different author’s style for writing. This book fits very well into a unit on comparison and contrast.

12. How parents can use this book: Use this book to get your child interested in reading. It is full of fun- loving action and a basic love for fun. Take time to re-enact the story, letting you child choose the character they want to be. Use the book as your script as you perform the play of The Three Pigs. Your child is sure to enjoy this book and find a joy in reading. Most of all, fantasy is a genre of books most children find very enjoyable. Three Little Pigs can be springboard to finding your child’s niche in genres for reading.

13. Accessibility: Easy – Can be found at any library or local book store. Purchase now at: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw_0_14?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=the+three+pigs+by+david+wiesner&sprefix=The+Three+Pigs .

Kiddie L. Critic

Greetings!

Hello, I am Kiddie Lit Critic. I have a strong interest in Children's Literature, and I find reflecting on it even more enjoyable. To make use of this fascination for Children's books and reviewing them, I am making this blog that will be updated every week with a new Children's Book Review.

Mind you, the opinions are solely my own, but for your information, I am a teacher with a degree in Elementary Education. I have taken several courses on Children's literature and reading as well as typical English courses. Writing and Literature are two of my beloved school subjects, and part of my purpose in this blog is to create a place where kids, young and old alike, can get excited about literature also.

Within my opinions about the stories and books I read are also ideas for teachers and parents. How can the book be used in the classroom? How can the book be used at home? These questions are answered each time I review a book.

Without further ado, let the journey through Children's Literature begin!!