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Strong Man: The Story of Charles Atlas
by Meghan McCarthy
Reviewed by Julie M. Prince
Angelo Siciliano was a skinny, wimpy kid. He was picked on and beaten up by bullies. So, as Angelo grew, he worked hard to
become a brand new man, complete with a brand new name—Charles Atlas.
He became known as "The World's Most Perfectly Developed Man."
The adult Charles Atlas became a model of physical fitness in the 1950s. Literally. He modeled for many statues that are
still around today. He was so strong, he could rip a telephone book in half, bend iron bars, and move a train with his bare
hands.
People saw Charles Atlas on television and wanted to be like him. So, he and his partner developed a fitness course that
would help others build strength without the use of weights and fancy exercise equipment. Anyone could become fit, and with
the help of Charles Atlas, many people did.
The fun, cartoon style illustrations follow Angelo Siciliano's transformation into Charles Atlas. Simple exercises in the
back of the book encourage kids to try some moves of their own. The author's passion for the subject is obvious on the last
pages, the author's note. Like McCarthy, readers would love to know more about the man behind the legend.
Ginger Bear
by Mini Grey
Reviewed by Alice Herold, Big A little a
Ginger Bear, written and illustrated by Mini Grey, is a cross between The Gingerbread Boy and
Where the Wild Things Are.
The little boy protagonist, Horace, is given a lump of clay and a cookie cutter. Horace fashions a gingerbread
bear with raisin eyes and nose. In the middle of the night, the bear wakes up and looks for some playmates.
(Compare to The Gingerbread Boy.) Unable to find any friends, Ginger Bear makes some with butter, flour,
and milk. Then the wild ruckus begins when the cookies come to life. (See Where the Wild Things Are.) The story takes
a frightening turn when the family dog awakes and discovers the cookies. Our hero, Ginger Bear, survives. Hooray!
Read more to find out how the author enables Ginger Bear to become forever young.
Grey's illustrations are large, colorful, and full of detail. Even the edge of the pages have extra pictures in
additional frames filled with numbers and cookies.
Mini Grey is British (from Wales), so some of the vocabulary may need an explanation (mum, tin, currant, for example).
Ms. Grey presently teaches elementary school—a ready-made audience. I'm eager to read this book aloud to a group
of students myself.
Chester
by Melanie Watt
Reviewed by Kelly Herold, Big A little a
Melanie Watt's latest picture book Chester proves that Watt is an author/illustrator here to stay. Her
books (Scaredy Squirrel, Augustine) are funny, often whimsical, and contain the type of detail young
children love. I adore the Scaredy Squirrel books for their appreciation of the anxious child—I mean,
squirrel—and Augustine charmed me with Watt's integration of fine art into the story of a penguin moving away
from home. But, I think Chester is my new favorite. I just can't resist an egoistic cat who flirts with the
dark side.
Melanie Watt purports to tell the tale of a mouse who "lived in a house in the country," but Chester isn't having it. He
takes his red marker and assumes control of the story, telling the mouse, "Hasta la vista, Mousie!" Every time Watt tries
to wrest control of the tale, Chester's red marker appears and takes over. But, just when he thinks he's won the battle
over authorial control, Watt takes her final revenge in the form of a pink tutu and tiara.
Watt's illustrations are gorgeous—full color and in large format. But it is her integration of visual humor with text
that takes her picture books into the upper echelon of what is published today. Whether a child reads Watt's books on her
own or with an adult, there is always something new—a cat's scribbled message, a famous painting, a squirrel's
worries—to consider and discuss on the page. I read Chester aloud with a six year old: I read Melanie's
part, while he played the bad cat. We had a riotous time and so will you. Don't miss Melanie Watt's Chester if
you know a child ages four to seven. It's the perfect gift this holiday season.
Mrs. Biddlebox, Her Bad Day and What She Did About It!
by Linda Smith, illustrated by Marla Frazee
Reviewed by Jill Chesler
We all have bad days, even witches, and Mrs. Biddlebox takes action to change hers. She bakes the whole day into a cake
and eats until her belly is full, and she has transformed the "rotten morning" into a "welcome" night." Linda Smith uses
familiar descriptive words very effectively, and invents some of her own—"creakies," "grumblies," "mussied"—that help
evoke the upbeat and energetic mood. The book is written in rhyme that will lend itself well to reading out loud and
provoke some laughter:
"When the fog gave her the whiffles,
She held her broomstick steady,
Stabbed the dreary lot of it,
And twirled it like spaghetti"
The grease pencil and colored ink illustrations are wonderful and effectively complement the text. Although her palette is
mostly shades of grey and black, Marla Frazee makes Mrs. Biddlebox look funny as she goes about her baking. And her
companion on every page is a white duck who children will enjoy tracking. While the cake is baking it is obvious that
Mrs. Biddlebox is feeling happier because white becomes the predominant color of the drawings, with an infusion of pastels
and patterns. Frazee uses strong swirling pencil strokes and lines to help create the visual mood.
Mrs. Biddlebox is a charming character who will delight readers and listeners (ages 4-7) and help them to think about the
possibility of taking control and trying to turn a bad day into a good one.
Little Skink's Tail
by Janet Halfmann, illustrated by Laurie Allen Klein
Reviewed by Kelly Herold, Big A little a
Janet Halfmann's Little Skink's Tail takes an interesting animal phenomenon and turns it into a fanciful, fun
story. A little skink slinks out one day to catch some sun and some yummy ants. She's a beautiful little lizard with
brown and white stripes and a bright blue tail. While gobbling up the tasty ants, however, she's spotted by a "large,
hungry crow." To evade the predator, Little Skink snaps off her tail and it goes wriggling off into the leaves, taking the
crow with it.
Little Skink misses her tail, but passes her days imagining the tails of her forest friends attached to her own body. But,
of course, no other tail is quite right. A porcupine's tail is "too stickly-prickly," for example, and a deer's too "short
and stubby." Halfmann has a lot of fun with language in Little Skink's Tail, using snappy, evocative
adjectives to bring a sense of fun to the skink's search for a new tail.
Laurie Allen Klein's illustrations are warm and foresty, with friendly animals scampering across a green and brown
landscape. Little Skink's Tail is perfect for three-to six-year-old naturalists and for school
units on animal adaptations or lizards.
Books Reviewed:
Strong Man: The Story of Charles Atlas, by Meghan McCarthy. Random House Children's Books,
2007. ISBN: 0-3759-2940-3.
Ginger Bear, by Mini Grey. Random House Picture Books, 2007. ISBN: 0-3758-4253-5.
Chester, by Melanie Watt. Kids Can Press, 2007. ISBN: 1-5545-3140-0.
Little Skink's Tail, by Janet Halfmann, illustrated by Laurie Allen Klein. Sylvan Dell Publishing,
2007. ISBN: 0-9768-8238-1.
Mrs. Biddlebox, and Her Bad Day and What She Did About It! by Linda Smith, illustrated by Marla
Frazee.
Harcourt, 2007. ISBN: 0-1520-6349-8.
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