Dust Devil

Bibliography

Isaacs, Anne. 2010. Dust Devil. Ill. by Paul O. Zelinsky. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books. ISBN 9780375867224

Plot Summary

Dust Devil is an action-packed tall tale about Angelica Longrider, also called Swamp Angel.  She is a “renowned woodswoman and wildcat” who lives in Tennessee. Like Paul Bunyan, Swamp Angel eventually grows too big, and in 1831 moves from Tennessee to the Montana prairie where there is more room for her. While in Montana, a massive windstorm moves through. She tames the storm and magically discovers a horse in the center. She meets a kindred spirit in the horse, whom she names Dust Devil. Angel and Dust Devil go up against Backward Bart and his Flying Desperadoes who are antagonizing the people of the prairie. They go on a quest across Montana to bring these men to justice and restore the peace.

Critical Analysis

Dust Devil provides a spirited and courageous heroine who prevails over an evil gang through her cunning and Dust Devil’s ability to call up the weather. This evokes the archetypes of good and evil with good prevailing in a happy ending. Other themes in this story are perseverance through adversity, acceptance, and female strength.

The engaging, whimsical painted illustrations provide a clear picture of the exaggerated size difference between Swamp Angel and Dust Devil to the other characters. Much of the story could be told through only the images. 

As wonderful as the images are, it’s the picturesque language, with strong use of metaphor and simile, that makes this book special. Read aloud, Dust Devil paints the picture of some of the regional issues on the prairie. It also helps put Angel’s large size in context. There are many humorous lines, for example: “[The] Desperadoes busted through Montana as fast as bad news.” Both the illustrations and the writing create a strong cultural detail of prairie life in 1830s Montana. 

I would enjoy reading this story before a visit to the Bob Bullock State Museum because there is a lot of discussion about the creation of landscape. Also, this tall tale is similar to Texas tall tales with references to landscapes and the strong use of exaggeration.

Review Excerpts

This book is a: 

  -  New York Times Notable Children’s Book

  -  Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Winner

  -  Junior Library Guild selection

  -  New York Public Library’s Best 100 Books of 2010

  -  Publishers Weekly starred review

  -  Kirkus review starred review

Booklist Starred Review: “Once again, Isaacs’ story and Zelinsky’s oil-paint-on-wood artwork create a laugh-out-loud tall tale with folksy phrasing and slapstick exaggeration. There are really two adventures in one here, which makes for a lengthy read-aloud, but children will delight in the deadpan, Old West narration and every gleefully silly, expertly rendered visual detail, from Bart’s steed (a saloon-sized mosquito) to Angel’s full-branched pine-tree knitting needles. A few pourqoui elements wrap up this handsomely designed, thoroughly entertaining stand-alone sequel.”

School Library Journal: “Zelinsky and Isaacs pull out all the stops…Zelinsky has a heyday masterfully illustrating the high jinks with his meticulous oil paintings on cedar, aspen, and maple veneers, all of which are elegantly encased by a thin red border. Using softly glowing tones, he brands his own version of a Western folk style to flawlessly render the big-sky setting.”

Connections 

-  This would be a fun book to use to introduce a US geography lesson.

-  This could be used along with a weather lesson on different landscapes (Tennessee vs. Montana) and 

    tornados.

-  Students could translate this theme by recreating the story in another part of the country or another 

   country. This writing activity would involve identifying story characteristics and elements.

-  Teachers can hand out individual pages of the story and have the students find any similes, 

   metaphors, or figurative language. 

-  This book would be easily adapted into a dynamic skit.

-  Other tall tales:

        Garretson, Jerri. Twister Twyla: The Kansas Cowgirl. ISBN 1460964810

        Kellogg, Steven. Paul Bunyan. ISBN 0688058000
        Kellogg, Steven. Pecos Bill. ISBN 0688099246
        Nolen, Jerdine. Thunder Rose. ISBN 0152060065

        Osborne, Mary Pope. American Tall Tales. ISBN 0679800891

The Three Little Pigs

Bibliography

Galdone, Paul. 1970. The Three Little Pigs. New York: Houghton Mifflin/Clarion Books. ISBN 0395288134

Plot Summary

Paul Galdone designed this folktale/beast tale about a wolf who wants to eat three pigs. The first two pigs build their homes out of inferior materials, and the wolf blows them down in order to get to the pigs. The third pig learns from the mistakes of the first two, builds his home from bricks, and escapes the wolf. Unlike other three little pig tales, this book continues with a second iteration of the wolf trying to get the remaining pig. He tries three times to trick the pig into leaving the protection of the house. A fourth time he climbs in through the chimney, and the pig cooks the wolf in a big pot. Each time, the pig outsmarts the wolf by preparing in advance to evade him. 

Critical Analysis

The line-and-watercolor illustrations engagingly show the emotions of the animals in the various scenes. The illustrations also give a good sense of movement when the wolf blows down the house. The author devotes two pages to this moment. There is a sense that the pigs are in the country near a small town. 

The pigs and wolf are simple characters. There is much back-and-forth repetition between the wolf asking “Little pig, little pig, let me come in,” and the pig’s response, “Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.” The wolf then repeatedly challenges, “Then I’ll huff and I‘ll puff and I’ll blow your house in.” Children will enjoy the repetition and will likely participate in this part of the story reading.

The second half of this story adds another layer to the persistent wolf in that he continues to try to get the pig out of the brick home. Due to the preparedness of the pig, the wolf never gets to eat the pig. This demonstrates the moral of the story, that preparedness and forward thinking will save the day. It also reflects the universal archetypes of good and evil. 

One criticism I have with Galdone’s extension of the story is the disappearance of the repetition found earlier. The language becomes very plain and not very picturesque. Although the wolf does ask three times for three appointments to leave the house, there is very little similarity between or within the pages of text. This would make the story less fun for children when read aloud. It also makes the book much longer for emerging readers. Personally, I would choose another version of this book to read. 

Review Excerpts

School Library Journal: “All in all, a very appealing edition of a beloved story." 

Kirkus review: “The text is Jacobs tightened, the drawings are jaunty rustic (with houses inventively framed in straw, sticks, bricks), the whole is more adroit and much more tasteful than Palazzo, more childlikely [sic] than the verse version of du Bois. No one will want to abandon Leslie Brooke but like Galdone's Henny Penny, this animates the tale for the widest possible audience.”

Horn Book: “Small touches — the framed illustrations of each pig building his house, the portraits of Mama and his two brothers on the third little pig’s wall, and the four-leaf clovers hidden on the dust jacket and in the end papers — help make for a balanced, sunnily attractive picture book.”

Connections

-  This story would be good for reader’s theatre. This would give students an opportunity to practice 

   storytelling. Here is a link to the script of the book:

   http://www.dcs.edu/webpages/dknox/readers_theatre_.cfm?subpage=1276200

-  Instead of the wolf being eaten, the children can make up another ending for the wolf and pig. 

-  Another option is to compare different versions of the book that have a different cultural background. 

-  Other Three Little Pig books with a Hispanic twist:

         Lowell, Susan. The Three Little Javelinas/Los Tres Pequenos Jabalies. ISBN 9780873589550

         Kimmel, Eric A. Three Little Tamales. ISBN 9780761455196

The Story of Esther: A Purim Tale

Bibliography

Kimmel, Eric. 2011. The Story of Esther: A Purim Tale. Ill. By Jill Weber. New York: Holiday House. ISBN 9780823422234

Plot 

This is a religious story about persecution and doing good deeds.  The story opens with the banquet at the palace of a mighty and powerful king, Ahasuerus. Ahasuerus chooses Esther to be his queen, even though Esther is Hebrew and the king is not. Meanwhile, Esther’s uncle Mordecai foils a plot to kill Ahasuerus, putting Ahasuerus in his debt. When Ahasuerus’ minister, Haman, arrives, he demands that Mordecai bow down to him as a God, which is against Mordecai’s beliefs as a Hebrew. When Mordecai refuses, Haman takes revenge by issuing a decree to kill all Hebrews in the king’s land without Ahasuerus' knowledge. Esther begs Ahasuerus to free her people, and he complies because he loves her and remembers his life being saved by Mordecai. In the end, Mordecai is praised, and Haman is hung when Ahasuerus discovers Haman misused his power. This is the beginning of the Hebrew holiday Purim.

Critical Analysis

The colorful illustrations immediately set the scene in the Middle East (Persia) thousands of years ago and help to demonstrate the historical importance of the story. The illustrations also help with the plot, which is full of action. Although the backgrounds help tell the story, the men and women all look very similar to other members of their same sex; It is hard to visually follow the characters. Esther is described as a standout natural beauty, so it is especially awkward that her look changes many times throughout the book. 

This is a dynamic story of bringing a bad person to justice and the misuse of power. The story has a great plot full of drama. An embedded history lesson explains the reason for the holiday Purim. It reads as a story with great character development. There is a lot of text per picture, which allows many conflicts to be created and resolved between the king, queen, uncle, and minister. 

Many cultural details help the reader gain insight into the culture and customs. One example is how the women “darkened their eyelids with kohl and reddened their lips with cinnabar.” There are personal details as well that reflect human traits; Esther dresses very simply, and the other maidens make fun of her before she becomes the queen.  This shows the power of inner beauty.

I would personally use this book when teaching history about the Middle East, Judaism, persecution, and possibly even bullying, depending on the population being served.   

Review Excerpts

School Library Journal: “The Megillah, or Scroll of Esther, is the biblical account of events in ancient Persia that birthed the Jewish holiday of Purim. Kimmel retells this violent, convoluted story without much simplification.”

Kirkus review: “The Purim story contains elements of an intriguing mass-murder plot complete with a benevolent king, a brave and beautiful queen, her wise uncle and a villainous prime minister. Kimmel’s well-paced, even narration recounts the familiar story of how the young, Jewish queen of the Persians thwarts Haman’s plan to commit genocide against the Hebrews.” 

Booklist: “Kimmel’s engaging narrative, simplified somewhat for younger readers, contains all the elements of a memorable tale—drama, intrigue, cunning, and courage. Weber’s vibrant, mixed-media artwork includes many setting details and humorous scenes (kicking Haman out of the palace) and will work well from a story hour distance.”

Connections

-  This would be a good book to use to practice storytelling.

-  This book could be the introduction to children creating their own variation with another holiday,   

    religious or secular.

-  This book could be retold through dramatic skit.