THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, June 19, 1994 TAG: 9406150426
SECTION: COMMENTARY PAGE: J3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BARBARA BURNS
DATELINE: 940619 LENGTH: Long
Two spoofs work a new twist on the enchanting story of Cinderella. Cinder-Elly (Viking, $13.99) is told to stay home to mop the floors while her mean stepsisters go to the basketball game. Suddenly, her Godma appears and, with the wave of her cane and the help of a trash can, a copy machine and glass sneakers, Cinder-Elly is off to the game where she wins the heart of the star player, who is, of course, Prince Charming! Frances Minters' rhyming, urban fairy tale gamely attempts to win her many new fans in her picture-book debut. G. Brian Karas' illustrations are hilarious!
{REST} In Ellen Jackson's modern feminist version of the Cinderella tale, Cinder Edna (Lothrop, $15), the stories of two characters are told simultaneously. The familiar, passive Cinderella feels victimized. She moans about her problems and relies on her fairy godmother to get her to the ball. Meanwhile, her spunky neighbor, Cinder Edna, earns enough money mowing lawns and cleaning parrot cages to buy her own gown for the ball and a bus ticket to get there. The humorous illustrations by Kevin O'Malley ensure that this delightful story will teach, but not preach.
Making an apple pie is as easy as - well, pie, isn't it? For readers of the delightful picture book, How To Make An Apple Pie and See the World (Alfred A. Knopf, $15), nothing is quite that simple. When it is time to run to the market to gather the ingredients, our heroine finds the market closed. Undaunted, she sets off to Italy by steamship to harvest the semolina wheat to grind the flour, to Sri Lanka to peel a piece of cinnamon bark for seasoning, to a Vermont orchard to pick the finest apples and so on. Marjorie Priceman has written and illustrated this deliciously funny story and turned the making of this all-American dessert into an international adventure.
In a departure from writing for her pre-teen fans, author Paula Danziger intends her latest novel, Amber Brown Is Not A Crayon (G.P. Putnam's Sons, $11.95), for children ages 6-8. It tells of Amber Brown and her best friend, Justin Daniel. Justin is moving away, and Amber is beside herself with grief. Tony Ross' cartoon-like sketches are a perfect complement to this humorous and lively text, which hopefully is the first of many more escapades for Amber Brown.
Jane Boulton has adapted a moving diary by Opal Whiteley, who was only 5 years old when her parents died at the turn of the century, in Only Opal: The Diary of a Young Girl (Philomel, $14.95). Opal went to live with a foster family in a lumber camp in Oregon and was uprooted 19 times as the family moved from one lumber camp to another. Boulton tells of one year in the girl's life. The exquisite paintings by award-winning illustrator Barbara Cooney uplift this often sad story and give it tremendous beauty.
For the millions of children who have read and cherished the Little House Books comes a special release from HarperCollins of Laura Ingalls Wilder's classic series. The pages have been reset and the jackets reshot from Garth Williams' original artwork (hardcover, $15.95; paperback, $3.95). Last summer a new generation of Little House Books was introduced with Little House on Rocky Ridge (HarperCollins, $14.95; paper, $3.95). Based on diaries, letters and unpublished manuscripts, Roger Lea MacBride picks up the family history where the last of the original nine books ends. Laura and Almanzo journey from South Dakota to a rocky ridge in Missouri in 1894.
The second of this planned five-book series was published this spring, Little Farm in the Ozarks (HarperCollins, $14.95; paper, $3.95). Laura and Almanzo have now settled in the Missouri Ozarks, and little Rose is the new girl in school. MacBride, who is the adopted grandson of Rose Wilder Lane, teams with illustrator, David Gilleece, to continue the legacy of this pioneer saga.
Another pioneer story and the long-awaited sequel to the Newbery Medal-winning Sarah Plain and Tall is Skylark (HarperCollins, $12). In the continuation of this beloved story the family suffers through a drought that is ravaging the land. Sarah takes Anna and Caleb back to her old home in Maine. Finally, the rain comes, and Sarah and the children return to the prairie to rejoin Papa. In the spring there will be a new baby. Patricia MacLachlan, who was born on the prairie, is a gifted writer whose many fans ages 7-10 will not be disappointed with this tender story.
From the critically acclaimed author Gary Paulsen comes a revised edition of his 1969 novel, Mr. Tucket (Delacorte, $14.95). This action-packed frontier story about a 14-year-old boy is a ``real knock 'em, sock 'em ripsnorter,'' according to Publishers Weekly. Francis Tucket is captured by Pawnee Indians in 1848. Soon he is rescued by a mysterious one-armed fur trapper named Mr. Grimes. Francis continues to face new challenges on the dangerous frontier, however, in this rugged tale for ages 9 and up. Mr. Tucket lives up to Paulsen's fine reputation for coming-of-age survival novels.
Also worthwhile is a survival story for ages 10 and up by well-known author and former Portsmouth resident, Theodore Taylor. In Sweet Friday Island (Harcourt Brace, $10.95; paper, $3.95), Peg Toland and her father seek the perfect place to spend a week together. They choose the serenity of Sweet Friday Island, an uninhabited island off the coast of Baja California in the Sea of Cortez. Not long after they set up camp on the shores of this secluded place, they realize they are not alone. The island soon becomes a terrifying and deadly trap! Taylor creates a tense and suspenseful novel that hooks you from the first page.
A former resident of Norfolk and two-time winner of the Newbery Medal, Katherine Paterson chooses as her new protagonist in Flip Flop Girl (Lodestar, $13.99) a 9-year-old named Vinnie Matthews. Paterson's heroines always have adult-size problems. Vinnie, her mother and little brother move to a small Virginia community after her father's death from cancer. She is coping with so many emotions that it is easy to see why she is angry and confused. Paterson brilliantly expresses the resiliency of childhood and the indomitability of the human spirit.
For readers whose thoughts don't turn to fancy, the springtime offered a wide variety of non-fiction. George Sullivan has compiled the biographies of 27 of baseball's greatest pitchers, from Cy Young to Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, in Pitchers (Atheneum, $17.95). Fans ages 10 and up will marvel over the contributions that these superstars made to the game. Pitchers is the companion volume to Sluggers (Atheneum, $16.95), published in 1991.
The Picture History of Great Inventors (Alfred A. Knopf, $17; paper, $13) is a fascinating volume about the clever people who have made the technical achievements that have shaped our lives. Gillian Clements features more than 50 inventors - one per page. The borders of the pages are brimming with illustrations of inventions and with little-known facts. Young readers will discover something new with each viewing of this informative volume.
Eyewitness Books continues to excel in non-fiction for youngsters. This award-winning series is chock-full of colorful photographs and interesting facts that will fascinate all ages. To date 48 titles have been published, including Arms and Armor, Knight, Sports, Mummy, Rocks and Minerals and Dinosaur. New this spring were Castle, Desert, Prehistoric Life and Viking (Alfred A. Knopf, $16).
The Visual Dictionary series, like the Eyewitness Books, is a comprehensive and visually outstanding treasure trove of information on a wide variety of subjects. Titles in this series include Universe, Ships and Sailing, Human Body and Cars. New this spring was The Visual Dictionary of the Horse (Dorling Kindersley, $15.95). This outstanding resource looks at the anatomy of horses, their equipment and grooming, types of horses and much more. For the young rider in the family, this innovative dictionary is a must!
by CNB