From: Kathy Thornhill <ktho>
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 1998 18:55:07 -0500 (EST)

Hello All- In response to Ginny's posting about Simms Taback's Caldecott Honor Book *There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly*--I love the book. Granted the story is not new--it's older than dirt--but his presentation is clever and slightly off beat, with showing what she's eaten, the rhyming comments from the other animals, the headlines on the newspapers, and magazines, the old lady's growing girth as she gulps animals--it's slightly off center, and that's why I like it. But then, I really liked *Tuesday* and *The Stinky Cheese Man* (the ugly duckling just grew up to be a really ugly duck!). I appreciate the beautiful artwork that won the award for Paul Zelinsky and *Rapunzel*, but there's something about Taback's version of the old song. I have never served on a book award committee, and so can't begin to understand their evaluation process, but for once, I'm not scratching my head and wondering "What were they thinking???" For once, I agreed with the committee's choice.

Kathy Thornhill
"She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain."
                        --Louisa May Alcott
Received on Thu 22 Jan 1998 05:55:07 PM CST