Colleen SC Reads - LIS 721

  Segal, L., translator.  The Juniper Tree and Other Tales from Grimm.  Illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Additional translation by Randall Jarrell. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973. 0374180571. This is a two-volume collection of twenty-seven stories translated from Grimm. A few of the stories are the ones most commonly retold, such as "Hansel and Gretel" or "Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs." However, most of the tales are lesser known yet fully in keeping with the common fairytale themes of magic, transformation, and punishment. There is no specific mention of methods for organization or selection; the tales can easily be read separately from each other and in any order. There are no source notes other than the statement that the tales are from Grimm, but maybe Grimm fairy tales are famous enough that more explanation is not needed. The assumption is that the Grimm tales were written down, not told. The book jacket claims that "Both translators have been painstaki...

Bowles, David. My Two Border Towns . Illustrated by Erika Meza. Kokila, 2021. 40 pages. $18.99 9780593111048. Gr. PreK-3.                 Both the text and the illustrations of this book highlight shared humanity, no matter what country we are in or what language we speak. Pink/red and blue/purple are the emphasized colors in this book, starting right at the cover and end pages. This is an important choice because although those colors are different – warm vs. cool – they are NOT opposites on the color wheel. The color scheme fits with the book’s description of the main character’s experiences in the United States and Mexico, and how the child sees that the two countries are not opposites and in fact have a lot in common, such as food and family. The two towns that the boy shows us are full of friendly-looking people and many different shops, giving a sense of plenty for the citizens of both countries. The Spanish language is empha...