Genre 1: My Friend Rabbit

My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann
Roaring Brook Press, 2002
ISBN 1-59643-080-X

Summary:
Mouse and Rabbit manage to get their plane stuck in the branches of a tree. Well meaning Rabbit rounds up an entire zoo-load of animals to rescue the plane via somewhat unconventional means. Despite the inevitable disaster created by Rabbit's rescue plan, Mouse accepts his friend's shortcomings, and in the true spirit of friendship, saves him from the angry animals. Predictably, because "whatever he does, wherever he goes, trouble follows," Rabbit and Mouse end up stuck again.

Critical Analysis:
The strength of My Friend Rabbit is in the illustrations. Not that the story is bad; it's simply a sweet, run-of-the-mill, predictable children's story. The illustrations are what stand out.
One of my favorite pages is when Rabbit first presents his idea for getting the plane down from the tree. The page has no text, but Mouse sits on the left watching with curiosity while Rabbit pulls the tail of what appears to be a large animal in from the right. With thick black borders around the page, the effect is almost that of an actor being pulled on stage from the wings.
The first animal is an elephant, followed by other unlikely "helpers" such as a rhinoceros, a hippo, an alligator, and a family of ducks. Rohmann unexpectedly turns the illustrations vertical across both pages (requiring the reader to turn the book) to show the entire animal ladder. The potential kinetic energy of all that stacked animal flesh coincides with the climax of the story when Rabbit has another one of his misguided ideas.

Review Excerpts:
A simple story about Rabbit and Mouse, who, despite Rabbit's penchant for trouble, are friends. When Rabbit launches his toy airplane (with Mouse in the pilot seat at takeoff) and it gets stuck in a tree, he convinces his friend that he will come up with a plan to get it down. He does so by stacking animals on top of one another (beginning with an elephant and a rhinoceros) until they are within reach of the toy. The double-page, hand-colored relief prints with heavy black outlines are magnificent, and children will enjoy the comically expressive pictures of the animals before and after their attempt to extract the plane. The text is minimal; it's the illustrations that are the draw here.

Kristin de Lacoste

School Library Journal, May 2002, Vol. 48, Issue 5

Connections:

• Caldecott Medal Winner
• Why does the author repeat the line, "Whatever he does, wherever he goes, trouble follows"? Do you know anyone like that?
• Why do you think the illustrator drew parts of the illustrations off the page?
• Write a continuation of the story: how will Rabbit and Mouse get down this time?
• Writing prompts: Write about a time you were able to help a friend or a time when a plan you made did not work out the way you expected.

Genre 1: Yo! Yes?

Yo! Yes? by Chris Raschka
Orchard Books, 1993
ISBN 0-531-07108-1

Summary:
Two boys of different cultures negotiate their way to friendship using fewer than 20 words.

Critical Analysis:
Chris Raschka manages to convey both the vulnerability and power kids feel when they make new friends using only a few words, some well-chosen punctuation marks, and illustrations of the main characters without any background.
The drawings are somewhat stereotypical: an outgoing African-American boy dressed in basketball clothes and a shy, nerdy Anglo boy wearing his pants pulled up too high. The stereotypes bothered me until both characters displayed the uncertainty that is natural when attempting to be accepted by a potential friend. At that point I ceased looking at the outside and could see the inside, which, I suppose, is the message Raschka is trying to present.

Review Excerpts:
"Once or twice the dialogue seems less than natural ('What's up? Not much. Why? No fun'), but overall, there's a novel's worth of drama in these exchanges, and Raschka's charcoal and watercolor characters pop with longing and vitality. The African-American kid is hip-hop cool, with posture that reveals the vulnerability beneath his exuberance; the little white boy (who was clearly dressed by his mother) definitely needs a friend."

Sutton, Roger, reviewer

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books v. 46 (April 1993) p. 262

Raschka exhibits an appreciation of the rhythms of both language and human exchange in his deceptively simple story. The boys appear on facing pages, physically separated, until the final two pages in which they cross boundaries to choose friendship over isolation.

Parravano, Martha V., reviewer

The Horn Book v. 69 (May/June 1993) p. 323

Connections:

• Caldecott Honor Book
• Have students explore how the use of different punctuation, text color, and text size affects to the meaning.
• How does the author convey characterization with such simple drawings and so few words?
• Use as a springboard for discussing how the idea of friendship is similar or different across various cultures.
• Compare "Yo! Yes?" to other picture books with simple drawings and few words such as Mo Willems' Pigeon books.
  

Genre 1: Picture This: How Pictures Work

Picture This: How Pictures Work by Molly Bang
SeaStar Books, 2000
ISBN 1-58717-030-2

Summary:
In this book, Bang examines how element shape, color, size, and page position impacts the viewer's psychological and emotional reaction to pictures. Using the story of Little Red Riding Hood, she shows how simple shapes can convey emotion and action when color, size, and arrangement are manipulated. Every page has an example picture with Bang's commentary about how different changes in composition affect the viewer's response.

Critical Analysis:
To be truthful, I expected boring. I didn't care much about the MAKING of picture books as long as I could READ them. Molly Bang surprised me, though.
The closest type description I can think of for Picture This is a concept picture book for adults or teens about principles of art and page design.
Despite my negative pre-judgment, I was completely drawn into the book. I was drawn at first by the pictures: simple shapes in only four colors that conveyed a variety of ideas even without the text. Slight differences in pictures engaged my curiosity, compelling me to read the text to find out what Bang was trying to do when she manipulated shape, color, size, or placement of various elements.
While the text is too sophisticated for young children, the ideas, the pictures, and the exercise suggested at the end of the book would be appropriate for learners of all ages.

Review Excerpts:
"This is a playful book with a serious purpose. Most of us can describe how a painting makes us feel, but few can say why. Bang brilliantly illustrates how simple forms . . . can be active, soothing, or downright scary. She shows how color alone can change the dynamics of those forms. . . . The book contains visual surprises on every page. . . . Picture This can help child or adult visualize the ordinary with the eye of an artist."

Lombardo, Daniel J., reviewer

Library Journal v. 116 (December 1991) p. 138

"By experimenting--adding pointed teeth and a lolling tongue to the suggested visage of the wolf or tilting the trees to achieve a more menacing atmosphere--{the author} explains not merely what but how a picture means."

Burns, Mary M., reviewer

The Horn Book v. 68 (July/August 1992) p. 462

Connections:

• After reading this book, find some of the principles Bang discusses in other picture books.
• Give students instructions such as "Cut out a triangle and paste it to a page." Hang up the various results and discuss as a class which ones seem friendlier, scarier, "good" or "evil"--let the students be creative. Then show favorite pages from picture books and let students repeat the process of discovering why illustrations convey meaning and emotion.
• For older students, supply paper and scissors. Have them create pictures that identify the tone or mood of a selected passage.

Old dog, new tricks

When I graduated as a journalsim major from Stephen F. Austin State University in 1988, we had manual typewriters in the journalism lab. I'm not kidding--the old be-careful-or-your-fingers-will-get-stuck-in-the-keys manual typewriters. The lab was obviously about thirty or forty years out of date and was still a few generations away from the desktop publishing revolution taking place at the time.
Now I'm taking my master's classes completely online. I've learned a tremendous amount about finding electronic information efficiently, using various web tools, keeping up with discussion boards, and now I'm figuring out how to blog.
Talk about new tricks.
I'm afraid my novice status will be obvious, but be patient. I'll get it eventually!