Title: "No Year of the Cat"
Author: Mary Dodson Wade
Illustrator: Nicole Wong
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Publication Date: 2013
ISBN: 978-1-58536-785-6
Rating: 4/5
In this Chinese Folk Tale, we learn why cats have a horrible relationship with rats. The emperor and his advisors realize that they can't remember any of the past dates in history, so they decide to name each year after an animal, but they will only choose twelve animals in total. In order to choose which animals the years will be named after, the emperor holds a race through the great river. Cat comes up with a brilliant plan to ride on the ox's back, since his friend the rat will never make it through the water. During the race, rat becomes a sore loser, though, and he pushes the cat off the ox's back, leaving him to suffer in the race. At the end of the race, the cat is the last to arrive and no year is named after him. Instead, he spends his time lurking for the rat to get revenge.
I think this chinese folktale is very cute and creative for little kids. It touches on important moral issues that children have to deal with, like how to be a modest/humble winner and not a sore loser. Also, the fictional story of why cats hate rats is adorable and is something that children would find a lot of humor in. The pictures are also very authentic Asian-style illustrations, which fit the theme of the book. THey are cartoon style, yet have lots of movement and realistic textures. My only concern with this book is that it uses a lot of extremely difficult vocabulary. Even though this book would be used as an authentic text during a read-aloud, I still think it would be hard for students to understand some of the words.
Title: "The Orphan: A Cinderella Story from Greece"
Author: Anthony L. Manna and Soula Mitakidou
Illustrator: Giselle Potter
Publisher:Schwartz and Wade Books
Publication Date: 2011
ISBN: 978-0-375-86691-3
Rating: 5/5
This traditional book is a Greek twist on the traditional story of cinderella. In the story, the daughter loses her mother, but its Mother Nature, the Moon, the Sun, and the Dawn that give her gifts of beautiful dresses and shoes, after she loses her mother and is oppressed by a mean step-mother. Despite her step-mothers cruel behavior, the orphan dresses herself in the beautiful gifts of Mother Nature and decides to attend the service that the Prince will be at, following her mother's advice to return home at the end of the service. The Prince becomes enamored by the orphan, and he comes up with a plan to cover the service floor with honey and wax, so that the orphans shoes will get stuck. The orphan abandons her stuck shoes, but the Prince decides that he will find the maiden who fits the shoe.
I give this traditional book a 5 out of 5. Every little kid knows the story of cinderella, but this story includes a different cultural perspective. The pictures are painted in the Greek style, and the characters resemble people of Greek origin. Even the dishes on the tables are of Greek origin. I think that this book would be a great way to incorporate multicultural education into the classroom, because it forces students to learn about another culture. It also shows little kids, that no matter what background someone comes from, we all have common life experiences and dreams.
Title: "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella"
Author: Paul Fleischman
Illustrator: Julie Paschkis
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
Publication Date: 2007
ISBN- 978-0-8050-7953
Rating: 5/5
This story follows your traditional cinderella story, but as the author says, the entire book is structured to act like a chameleon. Each part of the story is told from the perspective of a different culture from a different country including: Korea, Iraq, Laos, and many more. The content of the story, whether it be the clothes Cinderella wears, the work she does for her step-mother, or the food she eats, matches the culture of the country of focus. Also, each page has a main picture which is surrounded by a border of cultural images in a single tone/color. For example, the background for Korea is women working in rice fields and bearded dragons.
I give this story a 5/5, because it brings cultural awareness to little kids. This book shows that the themes in children's lives and in stories such as Cinderella are universal, and although the clothes and images may change, the moral of the story still remains the same. No matter what background students come from, they will have many of the same experiences throughout their lives. Also, I love the images in this book. The multi-cultural backgrounds are absolutely enticing, and the colors drag you into the photos. I think this would be a great book to use in a classroom to teach students about other countries and diverse backgrounds.
I like how you chose books from other cultures. It is fascinating to hear different folk tales from other cultures. I'm especially interested in the last book, because it takes many different cultures into account all in one book, which will introduce children to various ways of life.
ReplyDeleteTwo great versions of Cinderella! We should have discussed these in our conversation today in class. There are hundreds of versions that teachers can use in the classroom to compare and contrast.
ReplyDeleteGlass Slipper, Gold Sandal: A Worldwide Cinderella looks so interesting!!
ReplyDeleteYour first book, "No Year of the Cat" is funny because it takes a myth that is still relavant today and develops a history that goes along with it. I like the idea of this because the idea of it can really encourage children to think deeper about myths and how they originated. This type of story may be fiction and amusing for readers but can result in deeper thinking and comprehension as well. Now whenever the cat vs. mouse dual comes to play, I'll know the story behind it!
ReplyDeleteI really like the "Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal.." version of Cinderella and the idea of representing multiple different cultures and traditions into one book. I really think that this is a great way to show children the similiarities and differences between different cultures but also show that the idea of a story can be so versatile and connect to all children. Having a culturally dynamic book like this can really show children that if all these different versions are bound together by the same cover, they are all of equal value and importance.