Review: The House that Drac Built

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Title: The House That Drac Built
Author: Judy Sierra (website)
Illustrator: Will Hillenbrand (website)
Publisher: Sandpiper
Year: 1998
ISBN: 978-0152018795
Format: Paperback, also available in Hardcover
Pages: 32
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 4/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 3.5/5

The House that Drac Built is a Halloween take on the cumulative nursery rhyme "This is the House that Jack Built".   A more common example of a cumulative nursery rhyme is There was an Old Lady who Swallowed a Fly.  These tales start off simply but get progressively more complicated until they become a nice test of memory and in this case an impressive rhyming stream.


This is the house that Drac built.


This is the bat
That lived in the house that Drac built.


This is the cat
That bit the bat
That lived in the house that Drac built.

...


This is the coffin under the floor,
That fell on the monster whose bloodcurdling roar,
Startled the fearsome manticore,
That wrestled the werewolf,
That chased the cat,
That bit the bat,
That lived in the house that Drac built.


And so on.


Once all the monsters living in Drac's house have been described and their chaos listed, some trick-or-treating kids stop by and show that children are far more frightening to monsters than monsters are to children.  The kids soon have the monsters well in hand and things go back to their normal creepy state in the house that Drac built.


The rhyming text is clever, even if it is closely modelled on the original nursery rhyme.  The illustrations are well done too; the monsters look realistic enough to be believable without being very frightening.  And there's some nice foreshadowing (sometimes by a literal shadow) where you can see a hint of which creature is coming next on the page before it is introduced.


Boo pulled this randomly out of a library shelf one day and it amused him enough that we took it home.  Once we'd gotten into a rhythm reading it, he started loving it.  He seems quite fascinated by the pattern and will happily fill in the blanks when I pause for him.  In fact, I think he could recite the entire final verse from memory, except that he loses interest halfway through if I leave it entirely up to him.  He's not much for monologuing when we're not discussing ceiling fans or sunflowers.

I don't mind the book at all.  I find it quite fun to challenge myself to remember everything without looking.  I also must admit to being amused at my mother's dismay that I was reading something containing the words "Fiend of Bloodygore" to my two-year-old.  Happy Halloween, Mom!

Autism Spectrum Bonus:  Perfect for kids who are fond of Halloween and/or creepy monsters.  It's also perfect for working on memorizing lists and learning patterns.  Since there's so much repetition, you can also use it to try to prompt vocalizations by pausing before finishing lines once your child is familiar with it.

Bottom Line:
Nailed the concept of Halloween down,
With minimal aches in parental crowns,
And the bonus of Grandma's displeased frown,
All thanks to the toddler,
Who made us look,
And have fun with a book,
Named 'The House that Drac Built'.

Links:

The House that Drac Built on Amazon.ca

The House that Drac Built on Amazon.com

Review: Fox in Socks

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Title: Fox in Socks

Author/Illustrator: Dr. Seuss (website)
Publisher: Random House
Year: 1965
ISBN: 978-0394800387
Format: Hardcover, also available in Paperback
Pages: 62
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader, Pre-teen
Kid Love Factor: 4.5/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 2.5/5

Fox in Socks is probably the most difficult Dr. Seuss book we've ever read.  Mr. Fox in Socks tries to impress (and/or irritate) Mr. Knox with word games the latter doesn't want to play until Mr. Knox blows a gasket and outdoes him. It's full of rhyme, alliterations, tongue twisters, and of course Dr. Seuss's clever illustrations.

Through three cheese trees,
three free fleas flew.
While these fleas flew,
freezy breeze blew.
Freezy breeze made these three trees freeze.
Freezy trees made these trees' cheese freeze.
That's what made these
three free fleas sneeze.

The above is my favourite and yes, I've read it often enough to recite it from memory at a pace that makes me look talented.   Boo is more fond of the chicks with bricks, blocks, and clocks from the beginning than the sneezing fleas, though the tweedle beetle muddle puddle battles at the end gives them a run for their money.

It's fun.  It's fast (once you've read it a few times).  It's painfully irritating if it isn't limited it to once or twice a day, but quite tolerable otherwise.  Well, tolerable unless I have a massive headache or laryngitis, both of which have happened this past week.  Thank you, Boo, for passing on all those fantastic daycare germs!

Boo loves Fox in Socks.  It's one of the first books he would ask for by name ("Read Foss n Soss?"), and he loves asking visitors (his grandparents, our friends, unsuspecting door-to-door salespeople) to read it for him.  Personally, I love this too as it takes the pressure off me and my husband, yet simultaneously makes us look brilliant when we can recite it faster than they can read it.  The six billionth time is the charm, didn't you know?

Autism Spectrum Bonus: This is fantastic for verbal play, both introducing the concept and practicing.  I imagine a lot of young (or adult) Aspies would adore it, and it may also draw the interest of less verbal kids with the somewhat frenetic patterns and rhymes.  Older kids with good verbal memories might enjoy memorizing the tongue twisters and showing off their mad skillz.   It may also help with matching the verbal/written word to the illustrated concept, as the weird and wonderful tongue twisters (Fox in socks on box on Knox; Sue sues hose on Slow Joe Crow's nose) are all drawn out accurately.  As Boo is so familiar with the book (due to the aforementioned six billion readings), it's also good for encouraging more vocalizations by pausing and letting him finish a line or page.

Bottom Line:
Dr. Seuss your book is fun, sir.
My tongue is more than fully numb, sir.

Links:

Fox in Socks on Amazon.ca

Fox in Socks on Amazon.com

Review: Moose Tracks

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Title: Moose Tracks

Author: Karma Wilson (website)
Illustrator: Jack E. Davis
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Year: 2006
ISBN: 978-0689834370
Format: Hardcover, also available in Paperback
Pages: 32
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 4/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 3.5/5

Those of you who've been visited Sam and Boo before probably know of our fondness for Karma Wilson (see our reviews of Bear Snores On and The Cow Loves Cookies).  So, when we stumbled upon this in the library, we just had to borrow it for a peek.

Moose Tracks tells the story of an impressive socialite.  It seems he's had a multitude of friends over to visit in the past day, all of whom leave their mark on his property.  The bear leaves hair.  The goose leaves feathers.  The beaver leaves woodchips. The chipmunk leaves nut shells.  But he can't for the life of him figure out who left all the moose tracks, as none of his visiting friends is a moose.  It's a mystery, one that's humorously solved on the final page.

There are moose tracks in my kitchen,
and I'm itchin' to know why!
Some friends dropped over yesterday,
but not one moose stopped by.

Davis does a great job with the pictures.  The illustrations are complex, with lots of fun detail for kids to search through and enjoy.  The animals are a bit cartoony, but still seem quite human.  Boo's fond of finding the ladybug on the last page.

I must admit I don't enjoy this one as much as I do the other two of Wilson's books that we've read.  I'm not entirely sure why; Moose Tracks just doesn't strike me as quite as poetic and memorable.  That being said, the text still flows well and makes for a good read, one that Boo requests frequently.  For some reason it's all he's been wanting to talk about over dinner the last couple of nights...

Boo: Mama read Moose Tracks?
Sam (imagining returning the book to the library covered in pasta sauce): How about we finish dinner first, then read Moose Tracks?
Boo: Dinner first, then Moose Tracks?
Sam: Yep.  Dinner first, then we'll read Moose Tracks.
Boo (ponders this before grabbing two handfuls of spaghetti and jamming them in his maw): Dinner finished!
Sam:  Okay.  New deal.  Wash hands first, then Moose Tracks.

Autism Spectrum Bonus: There's lots here to work with, from identifying the various creatures, to counting moose tracks, to repeating "Moose Tracks", to making a game out of finding details, to talking about all the things each animal friend enjoys doing.  And whatever beliefs you have about how theory of mind relates to autism, I know I'm looking forward to when Boo's old enough to discuss the solution to the moose track mystery and why our unnamed protagonist can't or pretends to not be able to solve it.

Bottom Line:
'Moose Tracks' isn't on my book shelf.
Look, I just can't make it stay.
Boo's always dragging it out,
To read more every day.

Links:

Moose Tracks on Amazon.ca

Moose Tracks on Amazon.com

Review: Possum Magic

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Title: Possum Magic

Author: Mem Fox (website)
Illustrator: Julie Vivas
Publisher: Sandpiper
Year: originally 1983
ISBN: 978-1862910959
Format: Hardcover, also available in Paperback
Pages: 32
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 3.5/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 4/5

Possum Magic is the story of Hush, a young possum whose grandmother used bush magic to make her invisible.  Hush can get into all sorts of mischief and is quite safe from predators, but she longs to see what she looks like.  Grandma Poss unfortunately can't figure out what food is needed to reverse the spell, so Hush and Grandma Poss go on a tour of Australian state capitals and try all sorts of national foods until they find just the right combination to make Hush reappear.

Grandma Poss made bush magic.
She made wombats blue
and kookaburras pink.
She made dingoes smile
and emus shrink.
But the best magic of all...
Was the magic that made Hush INVISIBLE.

There aren't too many books out there that are quite as lyrical as this one.  It almost seems like a song as we read it.  I read it the same way every time and Boo's mesmerized.  There's just enough alliteration to be fun to say without it becoming annoying, though I must admit the magic starts to wear thin circa five times in a row.

The illustrations add amazingly to the story.  They're full of movement and somehow make the animals appear realistic, save for Grandma Poss's apron, slippers, and books, of course.  And Hush's personality shines through, even though she's technically invisible.

Boo isn't quite as fond of this one as he is of Mem Fox's Koala Lou, but we've still read it often enough I can recite the majority by heart.  He especially gets a kick out of repeating a rough estimation of the word 'kookaburra' a hundred bazillion times in a row, though he's quick to tell me to hush up ("Finished singing!") if I dare start "Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree...". 

Apparently I should stop waiting by the phone for Broadway to call.

Happily for those of us who aren't experts in Australian cookery, there's a glossary in the back which describes each dish mentioned.  If you notice this glossary right away instead of months later like me, you'll be spared the 0.32-second-long anticipatory wince while waiting for Google to spit back an image of a Lamington that isn't in fact a dead sea anemone on a plate like you for some bizarre reason envisioned.

I'm hoping my Australian cousins never find this entry.  I'll never live it down.

Autism Spectrum Bonus: Any child with a Special Interest in Australia, animals, food, or capital cities will probably be fond of this one.  With older kids, you might be able to have a conversation on why Grandma Poss wanted to protect Hush, and why Hush wants so badly to see herself again.

Bottom Line:
Mem Fox makes book magic.
She makes Boos grin
and Mommies sing.
She makes possums grow
and lyrics ring.
But the best magic of all...
is the magic that makes Australia visible.

Links:

Possum Magic at Amazon.ca

Possum Magic at Amazon.com

Review: Sylvester and the Magic Pebble

For our last review for Banned Books Week 2010 we have:

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Title: Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
Author/Illustrator: William Steig
Publisher: Atheneum
Year: 1970, re-released in 2010
ISBN: 978-1442416673
Format: Hardcover, also available in Paperback
Pages: 42
Age Range: Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: Boo is too young, so negligible
Adult Sanity Factor: 3.5/5

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble is the story of Sylvester Duncan, a donkey and only child.  Sylvester likes to collect pebbles, and he finds a doozy one day; a magic stone that grants wishes to the person (animal?) holding it.  Sylvester dreams of how he and his parents can use the pebble as he returns home, but he runs into a lion.  In a moment of panic, Sylvester wishes he was a rock so the lion won't eat him.  Fortunately this works, and the confused lion saunters away.  Unfortunately rocks can't hold pebbles and Sylvester is stuck.  Sylvester is apparently not the brightest pebble on the beach.  It's a very sad year for Sylvester, his frantic parents, and the animal townspeople who help in the search. But have no fear. It all works out in the end.


To his great surprise the rain stopped.  It didn't stop gradually as rains usually do.  It CEASED.  The drops vanished on the way down, the clouds disappeared, everything was dry, and the sun was shining as if the rain had never existed.

William Steig doesn't write like most modern picture book authors.  There are a lot more words to Sylvester's tale than are usual, and many of them are fantastic vocabulary stretchers--extraordinary, remarkable, ceased, perplexed, billion, sassafras, exclamations...

Unlike another picture book on challenged book lists, Sylvester literally being a jackass isn't why this book was banned.  Steig only ever calls Sylvester a donkey.  What Steig did do, however, is draw the town's police officer as pigs.  They aren't the only pigs in town, and apart from being unable to locate Sylvester (and really, he's become a rock. Can you blame them?) they're presented as sympathetic rather than incompetent.  I'm guessing Steig drew them as pigs as a visual joke for parents rather than as political commentary, but whatever the reason, some have become offended enough to challenge and ban the book.


Boo wasn't interested in the book at all.  In fact, he slammed it shut on me twice.  It was only by pretending to be reading it to Daddy that I managed to get all the way through it while he was in the room.  Please don't take this as a slight against Sylvester.  Boo does this often when books have too many words on a page for him.  Normally I'd just take the book back to the library and make a note to try it again circa 2012, however we're reviewing this one now because we haven't yet made it to the top of the hold list for any of our other banned picture book options.


Sylvester and the Magic Pebble is a story about something we see regularly on the news: a missing child.  We see the devastation of his parents and Sylvester's loneliness, but it's presented in a relatively soothing manner.  We know Sylvester is safe, if unhappy, and that everything works out in the end.  While Sylvester's misfortune isn't going to recur in the real world, it's a good opportunity to discuss the consequences of rash actions.


Autism Spectrum Bonus: Note: Since this story isn't one Boo and I have really shared, this section is pretty hypothetical from my perspective.  A nice conversation on personal preferences, hopes, fears, and dreams for the future might arise from talking about what each of you would wish for if you found a magic pebble.  The fact that Sylvester has a (special) interest in rocks might make the character appealing to budding geologists.  As I mentioned above, Sylvester acts hastily without thinking things through and both he and his parents suffer the consequences, which may be a good discussion point for overly impetuous kids.  There are plenty of emotional moments to discuss, from Sylvester's amazement at the pebble, his panic at the lion, his parents' worry and eventual resigned depression, and everyone's pure joy at the end.


Bottom Line:
Sylvester isn't an ordinary picture book.  It has big words, real emotional trauma, visually teases the police, covers an entire year, and focuses many of its pages on adult characters.  It is, however, an excellent book, which I hope Boo comes to appreciate.

Links:

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble on Amazon.ca

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble on Amazon.com

Review: In the Night Kitchen

For those of you who don't know, this is Banned Books Week a campaign of the American Library Association.  Celebrating banned books is encouraged every September as kids head back to schools and are presumably introduced to books their parents may or may not appreciate.

The Canadian Library Association, while not mounting a campaign per se, also keeps a list of all book challenges.  You can find the Canadian list for 2009 here: Challenges to Canadian Library Resources and Policies.  If you're from somewhere other than Canada or the US, there's a good chance your own library association keeps a list of books challenged in your country.  Go have a look; you're sure to find a book or two on it that will appeal.

In honour of Banned Books Week, I'll be reviewing three picture books which have been challenged repeatedly.  Here's the first:

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Title: In the Night Kitchen
Author/Illustrator: Maurice Sendak
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Year: 1970
ISBN: 978-0064434362
Format: Paperback, also available in hardcover
Pages: 40
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 4/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 4.5/5

In the Night Kitchen is of course a classic. Mickey, a child of about two or three, is awoken by noises in the night and falls out of his clothes and into a giant bowl of batter the Night Kitchen.  There are three bakers who apparently mistake Mickey for milk and mix him into the bowl and place it in the oven.  Luckily, Mickey escapes the oven, tells off the bakers, and turns some bread dough into an airplane, which he flies to the top of a giant bottle of milk.  Mickey swims in the milk and then pours some down for the bakers to make their cake.  Mickey then crows like a rooster and slides down the milk bottle and back into bed.

And he grabbed the cup as he flew up
And up
And up
And over the top of the Milky Way in the Night Kitchen.

Whew.  I wish I had more awesome dreams like that.  You know the ones: they enchanted you when you were a child and still do to a certain extent, though now you wonder what exactly it was you ate/drank/smoked yesterday to cause them.

The rhythm of the text is fantastic, but it's really the illustrations that carry the day here.  To me, the three bakers look like they're the identical triplet cousins of Oliver Hardy, although apparently Selmek may have been referring to the Holocaust with their small black mustaches and their baking of Mickey.  In any case, Mickey's irritation, frustration, wonder, and mischief all come through brilliantly.  The backgrounds are amazing, resembling the depression or wartime era Manhattan skyline made completely out of kitchen products and utensils.  The detail is astounding with Hosmer's Free Running Sugar, Kneitel's Fandango, Woody's Kosher Salt, and whatever Ta-Ka-Kake is supposed to be.  On second thought, I'm fairly sure I don't want to know...

The illustrations are also the reason the book has made challenged and banned book lists for years.  See, Sendak had the audacity to keep little naked Mickey anatomically correct.  It's not detailed, but Mickey definitely has a penis and testicles.  I'm not entirely sure what the problem of a naked three-year-old is, given that half the real ones on the planet would run around naked every day if given the choice, but apparently it's highly offensive in a children's book.

Sigh.

Boo loves the rhythm and rhyme of the text and the sing-song way in which we read it. He's been fascinated with the pictures from well before he was speaking, and he continues to love pointing out the stars and moon and milk et al.

And that's why, thanks to Mickey
We have cake every morning.

For a hint of irony on the whole book banning thing, I must admit to verbally editing the end of the book when we read it to say "we have milk every morning", but only because I don't want to start an argument with my literal little man on why pancakes aren't going to happen every day.

Autism Spectrum Bonus: In the Night Kitchen is almost a comic book in the way it relies on the pictures to tell the story which might appeal to more visual learners, while the rhythm and rhyme of the text might encourage vocalizations, especially during the bakers' two chants and the rooster crow at the end.  The incredibly detailed backgrounds give you plenty of opportunity to encourage pointing and interaction with Where's Waldo type questions like "Can you find an egg-beater?  What about a tomato?" And for those just  learning to name body parts, especially little boys, there aren't too many other picture books that allow you to practice "bum" and "penis" identification.

Bottom Line:
Boo takes the book to the reading nook
And climbs into Sam's lap for The Night Kitchen.

Links:

In the Night Kitchen at Amazon.ca

In the Night Kitchen at Amazon.com

Banned Books Week 2010

Review: Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy

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Title: Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy
Author/Illustrator: Lynley Dodd
Publisher: Tricycle Press
Year: 1983
ISBN: 978-1582460598
Format: Paperback
Pages: 32
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 4/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 4/5

Hairy Maclary, a Scottish Terrier, takes a stroll one day:

Out of the gate
and off for a walk

went Hairy Maclary

from Donaldson’s Dairy.

One by one, Hairy meets up with Hercules Morse (Great Dane), Bottomly Potts (Dalmation), Muffin McLay (English Sheepdog), Bitzer Maloney (Greyhound), and Schnitzel von Krumm (Dachshund) who all join him on his walk.  They sniff and snoop and scavenge and scratch, just like...well, pretty much every dog in existence.  They proudly march though their neighbourhood until they accidently come across Scarface Claw, the toughest tom in town.  Luckily our doggie troupe is not stupid, and with one hiss from Scarface they’re off and running as fast as their 24 feet can carry them.

As Hairy meets each of his friends, they’re named and described in a rhyming couplet, and every dog is repeated in order as each new one is added; very rhythmic and great for improving little memories.  Lynley Dodd is also very good at alliteration, using it sparingly but effectively.

My one quibble isn’t the fault of the author.  It's a difference between most Canadian accents and those of New Zealand.  I just can’t rhyme door with saw.  Well, I can, but only by crudely imitating my father’s English accent as it may have appeared before being overlaid by 45 years of life on this side of the pond.  Let’s just say it’s not a pretty sight, er, sound.

Boo’s loves the book, as long as I go easy on Scarface’s “EEEEEOWWWFFTZ!”  I was a little too enthusiastic with it the first time, and terrified him enough we didn’t get to that page again for four months.  Oops.

Autism Spectrum Bonus:  Because the dogs and their rhyming descriptions are recounted in reverse order each time a new one is introduced, there’s lots of opportunity to build anticipation, pattern recognition, and recall skills.  Once Boo was very familiar with the book (and after he’d fully recovered from my accidental discovery of his aural sensitivity to fake cat howling), we started pausing after each dog’s name and let him fill in the description.

Bottom Line:
Lynley Dodd
did a great job

Links:

Hairy Maclary at Amazon.ca

Hairy Maclary at Amazon.com

Review: Rhyming Dust Bunnies

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Title: Rhyming Dust Bunnies

Author/Illustrator: Jan Thomas (website)Publisher: Beach Lane Books
Year: 2009
ISBN: 978-1416979760
Format: Hardcover, also available in Paperback
Pages: 40
Age Range: Toddler, Preschooler, Early Reader
Kid Love Factor: 4/5
Adult Sanity Factor: 3/5

Unsurprisingly, Rhyming Dust Bunnies is about dust bunnies that rhyme.  Well, three of them (Ed, Ned, and Ted) rhyme.  The fourth, Bob, doesn’t seem to be in tune with the others:

Ted: Hey! What rhymes with car?
Ed: far
Ned: jar
Ted: tar
Bob: Look!

The rhyming bunnies seem confused by this.  Ted even goes as far as putting a sympathetic (condescending?) hand on Bob’s shoulder and telling him “No, Bob... ‘Look!’ does not rhyme with car!”

Sadly, this doesn’t seem to help Bob, who each time the game is played answers with a non-rhyming interjection instead. 

For those of you above the age of toddlerhood, you’ve probably predicted that the others should be listening to Bob instead of telling him that he’s not rhyming.  Ed, Ned, and Ted do clue in when the ‘monster’ with the broom arrives, though it’s not enough in the end, and all four of our friendly dust bunnies end up getting an all-expenses paid tour of the inside of a vacuum cleaner.

This is how I know they’re not the dust bunnies in my house.  See, the vacuum doesn’t come out unless the queen (or my grandmother) is visiting...though we do have a small scary monster who sometimes waves a toy broom in the general direction of dust bunnies.

This book would be entertaining to toddlers, preschools, and beginning readers.  It’s certainly snort-worthy for adults.  Older kids will likely catch on that Bob is in the know rather than just bad at rhymes on page 2, whereas younger ones may take longer. 

I was surprised by how much Boo enjoyed this book.  Rhyming isn’t a concept we’d tried before, and I’m quite sure he still doesn’t really get it, but he enjoys the game of trying to guess whether a word rhymes with another word. 

He’s also really keen on the word “Thwptt!” which I probably could have predicted if I’d thought about it beforehand.

Autism Spectrum Bonus:   Apart from the lessons in rhymes, which kids with a fondness for word games will love, you might be able to discuss the emotions the dust bunnies are portraying; they have simple faces, but they’re quite expressive and go through a range of emotions.  Also, and this might be just me, but having read Temple Grandin’s quote (“After all, the really social people did not invent the first stone spear. It was probably invented by an Aspie who chipped away at rocks while the other people socialized around the campfire.”), I must admit that I can’t help but think of little blue Bob as possibly being on the spectrum, trying in vain to get his more social counterparts to focus on their surroundings rather than chat.

Bottom Line:

What rhymes with cute?
Lute
Newt
Fruit
Dust Bunnies!

Links:

Rhyming Dust Bunnies on Amazon.ca

Rhyming Dust Bunnies on Amazon.com