Detective LaRue-Letters from the Investigation: By Mark Teague

        Detective LaRue: Letters from the Investigation, written and illustrated by Mark Teague. Scholastic Press published this book in
2004. Teague has created a hilarious and clever fictional character in the local dog, Ike LaRue. Ike, or Detective LaRue as he is portrayed in this story, goes on many wild adventures. In this tale Ike finds himself wrongly accused of terrorizing the Hibbins’ cats and stealing their “strangely yummy cat treats”. He pleads his case to his owner, Mrs. LaRue in a series of misleading letters, who is vacationing in France, with very little luck. However, when an additional string of burglaries delays the Snort City Police department’s investigation into the allegations against Ike, revealing their poor crime-solving skills, Ike must examine the clues and solve the mystery on his own. Ike escapes from jail and makes it his mission to find out where the Hibbins' cats have disappeared to and what they are up to now.
        Teague uses letters written from Ike in simple language to make the reader completely believe that he, the dog, is actually writing the letters. There are also several “newspaper articles” shown in the book that help to give the setting and explain the circumstances of the plot. For example, towards the end there is a clipping from the Snort City Register/Gazette that tells about Ike being named an honorary detective. The combination of Ike’s letters, telling about his own part in the investigation and giving the story humor, and the newspaper clippings providing more serious plot information about the investigation and the humans' part in the story, gives the reader a chance to navigate various types of language and establishes visual interest on each page. The balance of formal language and narrative language makes the overall storytelling language very effective and gives young readers exposure to many critical language elements.
       Teague also uses the traditional theme of “the dog dislikes the cats” to help the reader see the humor in Ike trying to clear his name and lets younger students follow the action, because they understand the common cat vs. dog relationship from other movies and books. Teague also uses a good vs. evil theme typical of fictional stories about dogs and cats that further helps the readers to immerse themselves in the investigation. This relationship, while explained in the letters, is fully elaborated in the images that show the cats true colors.
      Perhaps the most valuable and intriguing part of this picture book are its extremely detailed, full-bleed illustrations. Teague uses his pictures to extremely extend beyond the text, showing the reader elements of both reality and fantasy. On most pages we see an image of Ike in color, depicting the reality of his investigation and his “jail time”, then we also see a picture in black and white, usually in a cloud or thought bubble, showing what Ike is saying that he is doing in his letters, the fantastical elements. For example on one page we see the postscript: "P.S. Imagine how I feel cooped up inside this loathsome dungeon!" is matched with a color illustration of Ike and a police officer playing a game of cards, as well as a black-and-white image of Ike being framed by the Hibbins' cats. The use of the two conflicting images lets the reader pick up on the fact that Ike is not actually doing what he says he is doing, like being trapped in jail or working hard to solve the case, but rather that he is having a great time playing games, ordering room service, and doing other fun and relaxing things. While many of the images are only partly consistent with what Ike’s letters say, the images and the text work together to create the sense of humor in the story, having the reader read one thing, and then look at the illustrations to see what the clever dog, Ike, is up to. In order for the story to be completely understood, the reader has to rely on the illustrations to get a lot of their information on the action. Despite the extent of Ike’s imagination, as a reader, we find the way the setting is depicted in the images to be authentic in detail and consistent with what information is given in the text.

         This book is recommended by the publisher, Scholastic, for children ages preK to 3rd grade; however, because Ike’s tale involves comedy and a level of suspense waiting on him to solve the crime, I found that it would be an enjoyable read aloud for older grades as well. The comical stories that Ike dreams up and sends in his letters to his owner will hold the interest of older students and had myself, laughing and enjoying the story as well. This book teaches students to read between lines and rely on the images to get the full story. Mark Teague's hilarious mystery makes for an excellent read aloud and would be a great addition to an elementary school classroom or library!

Check out the pre-quil-Dear Mrs. LaRue: Letters from Obedience School

Picture Source: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/detective-larue#cart/cleanup

Anklet for a Princess: A Cinderella Story from India: By Lila Mehta, Adapted By Meredith Brucker

      "Anklet for a Princess: A Cinderella Story from India" by Lila Mehta takes the fairytale of Cinderella and adds traditional Indian cultural elements into the mix. Cinduri is a young girl living with her horrible stepmother and her terrible stepsister, who make her work very hard doing all of the chores both in the house and on the farm, while they do none of the work. Cinduri, our Cinderella character (bet you couldn't have guessed that one!!), walks to a nearby lake everyday to bring back water, and one day while standing by the lake she meets a magical snake who says he is her Godfather Snake and vows to help her with her troubles and make her life easier. In Cinduri's town there is an annual Navarati Festival and this year a handsome young prince will attended, but her step mother tells her she cannot go until she completes all of her chores, which will certainly be impossible. But with the help of Godfather Snake, Cinduri's chores are magically finished, and he dresses her in a beautiful gold-threaded sari and sparkling diamond anklets with bells. At the festival Cinduri dances for the prince and quickly wins his heart; however, just as you would expect from a Cinderella tale, she has to leave without a real introduction when her magic runs out midnight, but loses a sparkling anklet on the way out. Cinduri and the prince are reunited the next day when he comes looking for the mysterious owner of the diamond anklet. The couple are married and Cinduri moves to a beautiful castle where she and her prince---live happily ever after!
        Lila Mehta's story "Anklet for a Princess: A Cinderella Story from India" truly captures the beauty of traditional Indian culture and creates the Cinderella story you expect, with surprising cultural details. In the text we find elements such as a sari, the anklets, the magical jeweled snake, Cinduri's chore of carrying water on her head, and many other small elements that infuse the Indian culture throughout the story. But we really get a sense of the Indian culture through the watercolor images of Youshan Tang that depict numerous aspects of the traditional Indian culture using brightly colored full page bleeds that invite you to imagine Cinduri's life in India. Adding to the details of culture, each page containing text that is paired with a watercolor scene, also contains a small token from India that is relevant to the scene. This token is paired in the white backgrounded frame with the author's text and gives just a hint about what is being talked about, without taking attention away from the story written.
       Lila Mehta's story, coupled with Youshan Tang's artistic style help us as the reader to dive into the classic Cinderella fairytale and be met with a perfect dose of traditional Indian culture. I recommend this culturally diverse fairytale to children grades 1 through 3, as they will enjoy the story's Cinderella-like content and the vivid images. However, this book would also be great for teachers in upper-elementary and secondary schools who are teaching about how fairytales are shared among many different cultures on a global scale.

Picture Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/896430.Anklet_For_A_Princess?from_search=true&search_version=service

Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story: By Tomie DePoala

           "Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story" by Tomie dePoala is not your typical glass slipper, pumpkin coach, fairy godmother kind of Cinderella. This story infuses the traditional children's fairytale with a Mexican twist that can be seen from the isolated Spanish phrases (translated within the text to English for the reader), to the warm colored tile work framing all the text and illustrations on every page. While it is very clear that the story tells the tale of a girl from Mexico, we see still get the Cinderella plot we are looking for. Following her father's death, Adelita is left to live with her hateful stepmother and unbearable stepsisters. We have Adelita's childhood house keeper, Esperanza, taking on the role of the fairy-godmother who makes sure she looks beautiful when she goes to the to the fiesta thrown by Señor Javier, our eligible bachelor. In typical Cinderella fashion, Adelita makes quite the impression at the party, draped in her late mother's flowing red shaw. The same shaw that she uses to prove her identity the very next day when Javier comes looking for the gorgeous girl from his party. The two realize their instantaneous love is fate and in the style of all great fairytales, live happily ever after.
        The illustrations in the book are invaluable when it comes to depicting traditional Mexican culture. The full page tile framing style that dePoala uses help bring attention to the scenes being illustrated and the the text in the white backgrounds, without sacrificing color or cultural relevance.  In each framed scene the reader can see the Mexican food being used in the kitchen, the traditional cultural dress, Mexican architecture, and many other elements unique to the country. While as the reader we can pick up the essence of Mexican culture from only the text, but it is the brightly colored images, framed by vivid and detailed tile work that help to truly engulf the story into one of cultural significance.
        dePoala's version of Cinderella serves as a great tribute to traditional Mexican culture and to the worldwide use of fairytales. He perfectly enhances the familiar concepts of a Cinderella tale with culturally relevant details, such as the foods they eat (beans and tortillas) and the way they speak, using many Spanish phrases. In terms of teaching value, this book would be extremely valuable to upper-elementary and middle school teachers doing lessons on diverse cultures and lessons involving the way fairytales and storytelling ideas have evolved across time and cultures.

Picture Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/581442.Adelita

Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella: By Paul Fleischman

        The earliest story of Cinderella dates back to the ninth-century, a very very long time ago, and there are thought to be over 1,000 versions of the tale! In Paul Fleischman's "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella" the reader is invited in to hear the classic children's fairy tale of Cinderella, with a global twist, as we immediately can guess from seeing the Earth on the title page. The story begins with a young girl sitting on her mother's lap, reading a book with a glass slipper on the cover. As we continue to read the cultures portrayed in each scene begin to transform, as if the storyteller changes and the tale travels to a new and exciting place. "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella" is a story of patchwork genius, as Fleischman is able to weave together 17 different cultures to create one beautiful narrative of Cinderella.
       While it is very obvious that Fleischman is telling the familiar Cinderella story everyone enjoyed from their childhood, he surprised the reader with the turn of each page. We see Cinderella dressed in a beautiful Japanese kimono on one page heading off to ball, then as we flip to the next page we see her in French glass slippers, that transform to Indian diamonds anklets, then to Iraqi golden sandals, all within the span of two pages. Despite the fact that the story travels the globe bringing forth specific elements of differing cultures so rapidly, we still recognize the traditional Cinderella themes that are expected--good always beats evil, and love overcoming hate.
       With a text that spans so many cultures stuck in the confines of a picture book, we expect that images in the story may be disjointed, but thanks to the watercolor work of Julie Paschkis, this is definitely not the case. Paschkis illustrates the elements of each unique culture so that the reader can clearly see the differences, but maintains a consistent style of a two-toned patterned background, where each global location is written. The text on each page within each culture is framed in a box with a coordinating color, then written on a white background. This makes it possible for the reader to see the text without it getting lost in the vivid background. This same framing technique is also used when Paschkis adds a scene depiction, so again the image being shown is easily seen by the reader and does not fade into the background
      "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella" takes us on a global journey of where the classic children's tale Cinderella has traveled, while providing vivid cultural images and details. I highly recommend "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella" to young readers, probably for independent reading in grades 2-4. I also believe that this story would be very useful for teachers in upper-elementary and secondary schools because of its value in teaching about different cultures and the history of folktales and storytelling.

Picture Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/photo/690483.Glass_Slipper_Gold_Sandal

The Great Gracie Chase, Stop That Dog!: By Cynthia Rylant

        The Great Gracie Chase, Stop that Dog! by Cynthia Rylant is a story full of excitement that would be a great addition to any dog lovers collection! Gracie Rose lives in a quiet home, which she loves, with the bigger dog, the kitty, and the fish. Gracie enjoys the peacefulness of her home and was a good dog every single day of her life--except for one...the day the painters came. When the noisy painters come to paint the kitchen in Gracie's quiet home, she tries to tell them to take their loud clangy ladders and big-person voices back outside, but they do not listen to silly little Gracie. Instead, they put Gracie outside and she decides to do something naughty.  Gracie goes out the front gate that the painters left open and the excitement begins when those noisy painters realize Gracie is no longer in the yard. Upon realizing Gracie is gone, they begin to chase Gracie, but she keeps on running. Neighbors, trash-men, delivery people and more and more people from the town join in the chase to try to stop Gracie. That silly little puppy keeps on running until one by one everyone chasing after her becomes tired and stops. Gracie quickly realizes that the world is peaceful again and turns around to go back and enjoy her quiet home.
         Rylant's story invites the reader to join the fun as Gracie runs and runs and runs. Mark Teague's full-page illustrations compliment the chase very well, creating a unique perspective of depth as the town all joins in to try and keep up with fast little puppy. The use of depth perspective helps the images to almost run off the page, as we see each character charging through the town. This kid-friendly picture book does an excellent job of modeling story elements and character traits, and would be an excellent model for young readers learning about story sequencing and summarizing. I highly recommend The Great Gracie Chase, Stop that Dog! to young readers, as it is packed full of laughs and tons of excitement.

Picture Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/981940.The_Great_Gracie_Chase_Stop_That_Dog_

Flora and the Flamingo: By Molly Idle

        Flora and the Flamingo, by Molly Idle, tells a story of the unlikely friendship between a young girl and a balletic flamingo. The story begins as you open to the cover page and see the flamingo land gracefully on one foot. As you progress, Flora, a small girl in a swimsuit joins the story mimicking the unsuspecting bird's flowing moves. As the reader dives deeper into the book the characters seem to truly dance because of lift-the-flap style pictures that cleverly bring the emotions and ballet of Flora and her flamingo to life right before the reader's eyes. We see Flora on the first flapped page, just across the books seam, mimicking the one legged perch of the pink bird. As the pages turn she inches closer, dancing across the book's seam until her motions fall right inline with the flamingo who turns and gives Flora a bit of attitude, sending her across the book as far as she possibly can go. We see the friends apologize and then float together and begin to dance perfectly in-sync as partners in a graceful ballet. Dancing across the pages as partners, the friendship between Flora and the flamingo builds and the images convey perfect ballet motion. At the end of the dance the two leap together, with giant smiles, into the water as we open the culminating gatefold page. They then rise and bow politely concluding both the ballet and the story.
         Giving us all a lesson is unique book design, Molly Idle's use of lift-the-flap style animate the ballet telling the story effortlessly, without using a single written word. A Caldecott Honor Book, the use of almost completely white pages, outlines with simple pink blossoms perfectly guide your attention to the dance of Flora and the flamingo, who despite their mimicking ballet moves, physically have very little resemblance. The flamingo is tall, lanky and knock-kneed, while Flora is short, rounded, and wearing giant brown flippers. This book allows the opportunity reader to create an internal thought dialogue about what both the flamingo and Flora may be thinking as they go from strangers, to ballet partners, to friends. This fun ballet style wordless picture book helps us to remember the simplistic joy that comes from children's picture books, and as an adult reader challenges us to see the value of books beyond just written text.

Picture Source: http://www.snaphappymom.com/flora-flamingo/

When I Was Young in the Mountains: By Cynthia Rylant

          In this picture book Rylant reflects on the joys of being with her grandparents in the Appalachian Mountains. She tells of visiting the swimming hole during the day, eating pinto beans for dinner, and sitting on the front porch swing in the evenings. A Caldecott Honor book, Rylant's fond memories of the loving relationship she shared with her grandparents are brought to life with Diane Goode's soft and warm images depicting scenes of their everyday mountain living. Many pages begin with the phrase "when I was young in the mountains..." giving the the story an almost lyrical flow. At the book's end we see that she was truly appreciative of her mountain upbringing, not longing to be anywhere else.
         Rylant's writing is fairly autobiographical reflecting on childhood memories of the West Virginia mountains with her younger brother and grandparents. The images and accompanying memories remind me of my my own childhood, growing up in the foothill of the Appalachian Mountains. While of course my childhood included more modern day conveniences than the story describes (indoor plumbing!), the simplistic images of diving into a swimming hole on a hot day and grandma killing an unwelcome blacksnake in the yard compare shockingly well to my own mountain memories. Rylant's story reminds us to enjoy the simple things in life, remembering to be happy with what you have, rather than worrying about what you don't.

Picture Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/920576.When_I_Was_Young_in_the_Mountains