TRADITIONAL LITERATURE - How Chipmunk Got His Stripes: A Tale of Bragging and Teasing

-

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bruchac, Joseph & Bruchac, James.  2001.  HOW CHIPMUNK GOT HIS STRIPES: A TALE OF BRAGGING AND TEASING.  Ill. by Arguego, Jose & Dewey, Ariane.  rNew York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0803724047

PLOT SUMMARY

At the beginning of the story, Bear is bragging about how he is the biggest, loudest, strongest, and can do anything. As he is stating that he can do anything, Brown Squirrel decides to test that theory out by asking him if he can stop the sun from rising. Of course, Bear does not back down and attempts to prove that he can in fact do anything. He yells at the sun to not rise the next day. All the other forest animals join them that night as they all wait to see if the sun rises. As the sun starts to rise, Bear begins to yell again before realizing that he did not stop the sun from rising. Brown Squirrel begins to tease the Bear for being wrong and Bear puts his paw on Brown Squirrel, trapping him. Brown Squirrel begged for him to lift his paw so that he could apologize; however, instead of apologizing, Brown Squirrel runs away. Right before Brown Squirrel makes it to safety, Bear claws his backside. When Spring arrives, Brown Squirrel is now known as Chipmunk due to his stripes created by Bear.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Illustrations are kept very simplistic yet are bold like the characters in the book.  Keeping the illustrations very simple is appealing to the eye.  Even though the illustrations are simplistic, it is clearly noticeable the emotions of the animals. For example, Bear’s anger can be seen on his face through multiple pages in the colors and shapes made on his face.

At the beginning of the book, the author credits the folktale of many different versions being told by East-Coast Native Americans.  In Bruchac’s retelling, he uses short easily readable phrases making it ideal for children to read. His use of repetition of certain phrases in the story makes it a great read-aloud for multiple age groups.  For example, he uses chants by Bear and by Brown Squirrel that are repeated over and over. For example, “The sun is going to rise, oooh! The sun is going to rise, oooh!” Using simple repetition phrasing hooks the young listeners/readers into the story. Although the ending was fairly predictable, the book teaches a valuable lesson in teasing others.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

BOOKLIST: “The simplicity of the tale makes this ideal for introducing students to the concept of mythology.”

HORN BOOK GUIDE: “. Expressive illustrations in bright autumn colors bring out Bear's anger and Brown Squirrel's sauciness. This Native American tale is great for storytelling.”

KIRKUS: “The Bruchacs translate the orality of the tale to written text beautifully, including dialogue that invites audience participation. Aruego and Dewey's (Mouse in Love, p. 886, etc.) signature cartoon-like illustrations extend the humor of the text perfectly.”

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: “the dialogue is effective and invites audience participation–especially the repeated phrases with sound effects”

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “In their introductory authors' notes, the Bruchacs indicate that the story is an amalgam of tales they have heard from Cherokee, Abenaki, and Mohawk sources, and has further been fleshed out through their own telling over the years. The result is polished, cohesive, and energetic. While the story begs to be told, Aruego and Dewey's vibrantly hued trademark watercolors add significantly to the humor.”

CONNECTIONS

Ø  This story would be great to use for a lesson on bullying or teasing in childhood and that those actions have consequences.

Ø  In younger grade levels, students could create puppets and retell new versions of the story in creative imagination.

Ø  Other stories retold by J. Bruchacs:

o   Bruchacs, J. RABBITS SNOW DANCE. ISBN 9780803732704

o   Bruchac, J. & Gidwitz, A. THE UNICORN RESCUE SOCIETY. ISBN 9781338574623

Ø  Other folktales about teasing:

o   Bateman, T. THE BULLY BLOCKERS CLUB. ISBN 9780807509180

o   Dewdney, A. LLAMA LLAMA AND THE BULLY GOAT. ISBN 9780670013951

o   Lynch, J. MARLENE, MARLENE, QUEEN OF MEAN. ISBN 9780375973291

o   Sornson, B. THE JUICE BOX BULLY. ISBN 9781933916729

o   Sornson, B. STAND IN MY SHOES. ISBN 9781484402245

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PICTURE BOOK - The Man Who Walked Between the Towers

-
Image
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Gerstein, Mordicai. (2003). The Man Who Walked Between the Towers. 1st ed, Roaring Brook Press. ISBN 761317913 2. PLOT SUMMARY Philippe Petit is an everyday street performer.  He decides that after looking up at the two towers that it would be a great location to tightrope across. Follow his journey of making his way with equipment in tow to the top of the towers to begin his frightening, yet exciting journey. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS Author Mordicai Gerstein does a fantastic job retelling how a French man named Philippe Petit spent an hour walking across a thin cable that was hung between the World Trade Center buildings. His writing style really makes one feel as if they are witnessing the act in progress. Not only does Gerstein have a way with his words, but his illustrations add to his story in so many ways.  His illustrations alone bring children of all ages into the story.  After reading this story and admiring the illustrations, a reader is left with th...
Read more

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

-
Image
  BIBLIOGRAPHY Stone, Nic. 2017. DEAR MARTIN. New York: Crown Publishing Group.  ISBN: 9781101939499 Stone, Nic. 2017. DEAR MARTIN. Dion Graham , Narr.) [Unabridged Audiobook]. Audible. https://www.audible.com/pd/Dear-Martin-Audiobook/B074FC374M?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp&shareTest=TestShare (Original work published 2017.) PLOT SUMMARY This engaging story focuses on the struggles of Justyce McAllister. While he is a top student in his class and has his eyes set on Ivy League, there are constant issues at his mostly white school. Follow Justyce as he is seen through the eyes of officers that have racial profiling issues despite him being a good kid. Justyce seeks refuge in writing a journal titled “Dear Martin” as if he is writing to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His goal is to be like MLK, Jr. and strive to take nonviolent routes when dealing with racism. Things take a turn when his best friend is killed in front of him due to racial profiling and...
Read more

PICTURE BOOK - The Invention of Hugo Cabret

-
Image
1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Selznick, Brian. 2007. THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc. ISBN 0439813785 2. PLOT SUMMARY This novel takes place in France in the 1930s and is focused on an orphan child named Hugo. After the death of his relative, he lives by himself hidden in a train station. Hugo spends his days focusing on repairing clocks. His survival depends largely on part of being very secretive and hidden from others. However, things change when he meets an old man and his future becomes in jeopardy. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS Selznick's writing in this masterpiece is intriguing and keeps the reader on edge. Just when you think you have the story figured out, something changes. At first glance, one might not think this falls into a picture book category based on its size alone. However, Selznick provides the most appealing and detailed illustrations throughout the majority of this book. His illustrations are so detailed and interesting that the illustrations alone c...
Read more