Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Searching... Bayport Public Library | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Hardwood Creek Library (Forest Lake) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Oakdale Library | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Park Grove Library (Cottage Grove) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Valley Library (Lakeland) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Wildwood Library (Mahtomedi) | J 398.21 RYL | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
Once upon a time, deep in the dark, green forest there was an exquisite house made of cake and sugar-- a house made to lure lost, hungry children. But the witch whose delicious house lured Hansel and his sister, Gretel had forgotten two things about lost children: they can be very clever and very brave.
Author Notes
Cynthia Rylant was born on June 6, 1954 in Hopewell, Virginia. She attended and received degrees at Morris Harvey College, Marshall University, and Kent State University.
Rylant worked as an English professor and at the children's department of a public library, where she first discovered her love of children's literature.
She has written more than 100 children's books in English and Spanish, including works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Her novel Missing May won the 1993 Newbery Medal and A Fine White Dust was a 1987 Newbery Honor book. Rylant wrote A Kindness, Soda Jerk, and A Couple of Kooks and Other Stories, which were named as Best Book for Young Adults. When I was Young in the Mountains and The Relatives Came won the Caldecott Award.
She has many popular picture books series, including Henry and Mudge, Mr. Putter and Tabby and High-Rise Private Eyes. (Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Rylant retells the familiar Grimm tale with an emphasis on the courage and character of its young protagonists. She opens by noting that while guardian spirits may protect small children, "Hansel and Gretel" is the story "of children who find the courage to protect themselves." She focuses on the family dynamics: the weakness of their father, the cruel machinations of the bitter stepmother, and the effect on the children. The language is forceful and direct throughout: the siblings learn that wickedness takes many forms, and that a smile often masks evil intentions. After escaping the witch, the children are helped on their way home by a large swan, and Rylant surmises that perhaps guardian spirits finally intervene "when small children have already been so brave." Complementing this retelling, Corace's pen-and-ink artwork features neutral hues and sober-faced children. The book has an old-fashioned, handcrafted look with illustrations and text carefully placed on each page. There are many fine versions of this tale, including Rika Lesser and Paul O. Zelinsky's version (Dutton, 1999), but libraries will want to add this distinctive retelling for Rylant's strong-minded voice and Corace's attractive art.-Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
(Primary, Intermediate) Stating her intent at the outset, Rylant observes that "guardian spirits [may] watch over and protect small children...But there are also stories of children who find the courage to protect themselves." While adhering to the traditional events of the folktale, she continues to nudge the reader with explanations ("Wickedness can wear a smile just as goodness can. Hansel and Gretel would soon learn this hard lesson"). Hansel is explicitly courageous from the beginning, but Gretel is portrayed as particularly wimpy until, "as smart as her brother," she slams that oven door. Such explanations don't really improve the story, though they will appeal to more didactic adults, and, to be fair, Rylant handles them with grace. Corace's generalized illustrations make an interesting counterpoint to Anthony Browne's specific characterizations and twentieth-century setting in his 1981 Hansel and Gretel. Depicted in a similar palette of deep greens and shadowed browns with touches of candy red, her settings resemble dark, dramatically lit stage sets, while her characters convey emotion adroitly, though -- with faces suggested by a minimum of delicate lines -- they lack individuality. For collections that can support a variety of versions of this essential tale, a good addition. From HORN BOOK, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Observing that the classic tale features resourceful children saving themselves from evil rather than relying on "guardian spirits" or other outside help, Rylant delivers a straight, simply phrased retelling that Corace illustrates with clean-lined woodland scenes featuring figures in, largely, modern-looking country dress. Because the characters stand and gesture like dancers, and bear abstracted (or, in the cases of the stepmother and the witch, mildly annoyed) expressions, there is a theatrical quality to the large pictures that will help more sensitive children keep the story's betrayals and dangers at arm's length. So, too, does the text: The father, readers learn, "agreed to do what his selfish wife told him to do, for he had no fight left in him." There are zillions of versions available, but the language and the visual harmony of this one makes it particularly suitable for sharing with younger audiences. (Picture book/folktale. 4-6) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
This handsome edition of the folktale gives no credit to the Grimm brothers or to any other traditional version of the familiar story. The writing is clean and well cadenced, but the essential darkness of this tale of child abandonment and intended cannibalism is reinforced by sententious reflections such as There are many forms of wickedness in the world. Sometimes it is easy to recognize who is evil. Sometimes it is not easy at all. Wickedness can wear a smile just as goodness can. Corace's distinctive illustrations feature strong composition, confident line work, and a fine sense of color. Some of the pictures have a distinctively Japanese sensibility. Many show the children isolated within a relatively dark world, a visual interpretation entirely in keeping with the tone of the text. For all that, this is a lovely edition, though it may appeal more to adults than to children.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2008 Booklist