Next week, Treasure Island!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Nannies and New Challenge
This week, we examined the women, the myths, and the stories of nannies. Next week, we will try something new. Many stories, such as Treasure Island and The Three Musketeers, inspire multiple "spinoffs," usually in the form of movies. So, we will compare a few of the new works with the original source.
Next week, Treasure Island!
Next week, Treasure Island!
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music. Produced by 20th Century Fox.
Plot: Maria, a carefree nun, unexpectedly finds herself serving as a governess for the von Trap children. The children, hungry for attention for their reclusive father, immediately attempt to drive her away from the manor. However, the perky nun manages to win the favor of the children and their father through the comfort of music. The family gains fame for their vocal performances, but the looming threat of the Nazis rapidly approaches their corner of Austria.
Genre: Musicals, Movies, Nannies
Reading Level: Rated G
Similar Titles: Mary Poppins, Bednobs and Broomsticks, My Fair Lady
Personal Notes: Many people consider this to be one of the best musicals produced in movie form. However, it is time for brutal honesty. I have only managed to watch this entire movie once. Granted, I am not very fond of musicals to begin with, which probably influences much of my opinion, but the movie just does not have the amount of action to justify over two hours of film. Given the choice, I prefer Bednobs and Broomsticks, which is shorter and faster-paced.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Nurse Matilda
Brand, Christianna and Ardizzone, Edward. Nurse Matilda. New York : Bloomsbury Children's Books, 2005.
Plot: The Brown children are incredibly naughty! After driving away every nanny, governess, and nursery maid in town, the Browns find themselves desperate for any solution. Nurse Matilda, a mysterious, hideous nanny, is the solution. While she has strict conditions for her work, she gains the results the Browns hoped for. With a bang of her black walking stick, the children find themselves launched into unreal situations caused by their own misbehavior. Yet, as they learn how their actions affect others, the children learn to be good, which has a surprising effect on Nurse Matilda.
Genre: Nannies, Children, Fantasy, Tweens
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Similar Titles: 17 Things I'm Not Allowed to Do Anymore, How Not to Babysit Your Brother, Mary Poppins
Personal Thoughts: The book combines surreal naughtiness with startling sorcery to get an expected but still surprising resolution. Through Nurse Matilda's lessons, the children do learn to behave. Yet the path to the change remains unexpectedly entertaining.
The book also provided the basis for the 2005 film Nanny McPhee, which received favorable reviews and led to a sequel in 2010.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Random Attack and Nannies
So we end what is, I hope to be, the first of many Random Attack weeks. Next week, we will focus on the fiction (and perhaps fact) surrounding nannies.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Baba Yaga & the Wise Doll
Oram, Hiawyn. Baba Yaga & the Wise Doll. New York : Dutton Children's Books, 1998.
Plot: Too Nice, desperate for respect from her peers, is forced to approach Baba Yaga, a witch eager to remind the girl of her place. The witch forces Too Nice to perform a series of impossible tasks or be eaten. Yet, through the gift of a doll, Too Nice succeeds and even gains the witch's favor.
Genre: Fairy Tales, Picture Books
Reading Level: Ages 9-12.
Similar Titles: Vasilisa the Beautiful, The Black Swans, Mossycoat
Personal Thoughts: The book retells the Russian folktale, Vasilisa the Beautiful, in a child-friendly manner. The original is a bit like a Cinderella story, except instead of going to the ball, the heroine visits a witch that unexpectedly takes out the stepmother and stepsisters in possibly one of the most over-the-top sequences in fairy tale history (I am not going to give it away. Look it up.). The retelling is pretty well illustrated and executed, but the last sentence of the story "And Too Nice - not surprisingly after all she'd been through - stopped being too nice and become...well...Just About Right" seems really...well...pointless. I understand the reasoning behind including it. Many storytellers wish to show how a character grows through the conflicts of the story. However, the tale never really takes her through the process of change, so it is unseemly abrupt. Also, it seems to imply too nice is a negative without really explaining why. Is Oram trying to caution readers about being courteous? Submissive? Generous? Goody-goody? Individualistic? Unaccepted? Unfortunately, readers typically consider the last part of a story to be the most meaningful, and Oram ends the story on a blurry commentary on ideal behavior.
The Sleeping Beauty
Hyman, Trina. The Sleeping Beauty. Boston : Little, Brown and Company, 1977.
Plot: A retelling of the French fairy tale, The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood. After years of waiting, a king and queen finally have a child, a little girl. The princess is blessed by fairies, but one, feeling slighted by the king, places a curse on the child. Before she is sixteen, she will die by touching a spindle. However, another fairy manages to reduce the curse into a plague of sleep. The princess and her castle sleep for a century before a prince manages to arrive when she awakens.
Genre: Fairy Tales, Picture Books
Reading Level: Aimed at 9-12 year-olds, but adults may want to caution younger readers due to scary illustrations.
Similar Titles: Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Beauty and the Beast
Personal Thoughts: Most renditions of this story fall into two categories: the original or the clean. The clean version is, in essence, the "Disney" version. The original, like many first editions of fairy tales, is gory. The "Disney" version actually ends in the middle of the original, which continues after the awakening into a complex tale of the princess versus a cannablistic in-law armed with a snake pit. Both stories probably have something to their merit, but this particular retelling tries take a middle path through both versions. It does not work. The result is a story that is too intense for younger readers but too simple for older ones. There are better retellings available.
Side Note: Toothless is going to eat the prince.
The Golden Slipper: A Vietnamese Legend
Lum, Darrell. The Golden Slipper: A Vietnamese Legend. Mahwah, N.J. : Troll Associates, 1994.
Plot: A Cinderella-esque story from Vietnam. This retelling focuses on Tam, a hardworking, first daughter of a rice farmer. While she is kind and generous, her stepmother treats her cruely, favoring her own daughter, Cam. While Cam enjoys treats, cloths, and play, Tam must take care of the house and fields. Despite her misfortune, change comes through her kindness and a remarkable brocade shoe...
Genre: Fairy Tales, Picture Books
Reading Level: Ages 9-12, but younger readers may enjoy it as well.
Similar Titles: The Sea King, Children of the Dragon: Selected Tales from Vietnam
Personal Thoughts: The Cinderella story is perhaps one of the most universal fairy tales in the world. Nearly every culture offers some variation of a neglected but kind daughter given the respect and blessings she deserves. This retelling captures the goodness of the protagonist through her actions and the actions of her relatives. The pictures assist the story, offering pretty illustrations focusing on the royal colors of gold and yellow in an unusual, mosaic fashion. As such, the capture the attention of the readers, even if they do not have experience with Vietnamese culture. Overall, this offers the comfort of a familiar concept as a lens into an unfamiliar culture. As such, it can benefit young readers.
Side Note: Why is Jerome holding a dollar? Simple. I wanted to get your attention.
The Boy Who Drew Cats
Plot: Unlike most of his family, Sesshu Toyo does not possess the strength to help on the farm. However, he is very clever, so his parents send him to become a priest. While he lives up to their expectations, he also harbors a fault. He loves to draw cats, even when he should study. His passion leads to his failure as a priest, but also a gateway to his destiny within an abandoned temple.
Genre: Picture Books, Fairy Tales, Animals
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Similar Titles: Cats of Myths, The Flying Canoe, Puss in Boots
Personal Thoughts: This is one of my favorite fairy tales, and Hodges does it justice. The boy is understandable, the priest is authorative, and the cats are noble. The illustrations also serve the story well. The artist, Ari Sogabe, mimics traditional Japanese watercolors, adding to the exotic feel of the story and adding to the artistic themes of the tale.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
National Treasure
Plot: For generations, the Gates family has sought a marvelous treasure with only one clue - the secret lies with Charlotte - given to their ancestor. While none ever succeeded, Benjamin Gates finally finds a benefactor willing to back his search. He finds the Charlotte and another clue. Apparently, the next bit of information about the treasure rests on the back of the Declaration of Independence. After a betrayal and escape, Benjamin and a nerdy cohort must unit forces with a document worker to save the Declaration, stop the traitor, and find the evasive treasure.
Genre: Historical Fiction, Adventure, Movies
Reading Level: Rated PG
Similar Titles: Night at the Museum, Indiana Jones
Personal Thoughts: Many critics panned the movie for being unrealistic. At the risk of sounding snarky, why did they look for realism in an adventure film? The movie plays on the current popularity of conspiracy theories while embracing national history in a larger than life manner. As such, the movie performs very well, creating what a relative of mine calls "a clean Indiana Jones" suitable for the Forth of July.
A sequel was produced in 2007. While critics hated it, it was a top-grossing film for the year.
Apparently, another film in the series is planned, but its stage of production is not known.
Hatchet
Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet. New York: Bradbury Press, 1987.
Plot: On the way to visit his father in the oil wells of Canada, Brian finds himself in the worst-case scenario. The pilot suffers a heart attack and dies. Brian manages to land the plane, but finds himself lost and alone in the Canadian wilderness. His only tools are his tattered, wet clothes and his small hatchet, bought by his mother. He survives by learning to hunt, fish, make shelter, and create fire with his meager provisions. Yet, even with his survival at risk, he cannot forget the Secret. The Secret caused him to visit his father. The Secret caused his parents to divorce and separate with a national border between them. Yet, the Secret cannot stop him from surviving.
Reading Level: 6-8 grade
Genre: Adventure, Survival
Similar Titles: Julie of the Wolves, Brian’s Return, Sign of the Beaver
Personal Thoughts: The book won a Newbery Honor Award. However, I did not care for it. While this novel covered physiological issues, such as secrets, parental relationships, and coming of age, much of the emotion seems tacked on, almost like the "drama" in a reality-television series. The fact that a boy finds himself in a struggle for survival makes enough conflict for a novel by itself. The family issues fail to add depth or genuine sympathy for the protagonist. Additionally, Brian seems artificially mature and aloof, particularly in comparison to CC from Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society, Sam from My Side of the Mountain, or Karana from Island of the Blue Dolphins. Unlike the other heroes, never really appears to be a child. Rather, he is an “adult in a kid’s body.” The other protagonists' changes were more gradual and believable. Even so, the novel does present the challenges of survival as challenges. Nothing comes automatically or easily, so that aspect of the story is realistic. Apparently, two sequels came as a result of Hatchet’s success. The novel also provided the basis for Cry in the Wild, a movie made in 1990.
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