James Stevenson (1)Besprekingen

This book is a collection of short poems with matching illustrations. This is another great option for primary students who are getting more advanced in their reading. I think this is a great book to draw kids into their reading as they are short and simple yet silly and fun. I again would love to have this in a future classroom library.

I think this book is fun for primary students. It is a story about kids trying to scare their grandpa, but it doesn't work, and they wonder why. he then tells them the story of when he did get scared back when he was a kid, but we learn it wasn't a real story it was just a play to scare the kids back.

Substance:
On the morning after Christmas,Teddy the Bear and Annie the doll, having been dumped by their kids who received all the newest toys, are rescued from their garbage cans by Chauncey the dog.

Stevenson's witty story of their attempts to get used to being rejected has a happy ending, of course, but is a subtle lesson on the importance to all of us of being loved, and having someone to love.

Style: Stevenson's illustrations, not-quite-realistic watercolors, are perfectly suited to the story.

NOTE: Okay, I'm a Stevenson fan, and can't believe we missed this one when our kids were small, because they loved "The Sea-view Hotel" and "The Worst Person in the World." My favorite is "Could Be Worse!," especially since becoming a grandparent myself.

Oh my gosh ness... this is adorably funny.

When Louie and Mary Ann ask Grandpa what day it is, he says he has no idea. They tell him that it is Easter and they are going to hunt for eggs.

“Did you ever hunt for eggs, Grandpa?”

Grandpa tells the children about his egg-hunting adventure . . . an adventure that includes a conversation with the Easter bunny, a trip to the far-off Frammistan Mountains [home of the world’s greatest eggs], a giant bird, a bear, a blizzard, three sea monsters, and Grandpa’s friend, Charlotte.

And just what did happen to that giant egg that Grandpa got for Charlotte?

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The story, told in a combination of traditional picture book and comic book fashion, is sure to elicit giggles from young readers. Colorful illustrations, a story filled with magical, laughter-inducing moments, and unexpected encounters and events all combine to create a story sure to please. [The cigar-smoking Easter bunny might be a bit over the top, but it sort of fits in a book written in 1983.]

Hilarity will ensure as Grandpa spins his fantastical story, a tall tale for sure . . . or is it?

Highly recommended.

Rather amusing Scrooge-lite tale of a grump who inadvertently falls into the Christmas spirit.

When I awoke 4/1/2021, I was shocked to see it had snowed-- we had about an inch of snow covering everything. This book was so fitting for the day.

Howard is a duck and has missed the migration south for the winter. He can't see through a snowstorm and lands in a city, which turns out to be NYC. He makes many friends over the course of the winter with other animals that in habitat the environs, and when his duck group returns in the spring, his non-duck friends think he has left to rejoin the ducks, but they were surpised to find he just told the ducks goodbye. While getting to know the other animals, they tour the city and visit many famous attractions.

It's a brutally hot summer in this sixth and final picture-book devoted to the adventures of Emma the witch, her woodland friends, and her two witchy tormentors, Dolores and Lavinia. When the latter head to the beach to get some relief, they can't leave well enough alone, and insist on taunting Emma & Co., and playing a nasty trick on them. Not to be outdone, the friends turn the tables, and Dolores and Lavinia are driven from their seaside holiday, leaving Emma and the animals to enjoy it in their place...

As I mentioned in my review of the previous picture-book in this series, Un-Happy New Year, Emma!, these books start to feel a little formulaic after a while. The basic story-line remains the same in all of them: Emma hopes that Dolores and Lavinia have reformed, they prove they haven't by doing something mean and nasty, and then Emma and her friends put them in their place by playing a clever trick on them. Emma at the Beach definitely follows this narrative trajectory, and is, like its predecessors, told exclusively through character dialogue. I think young children who like the character of Emma, or who enjoy stories in which the target of bullying gets their own back, will still find it very entertaining. For myself, I am glad to have read it, witchy picture-books being a pet project of mine, but cannot recommend it as a particularly outstanding example of the type.

Emma the witch returns in this fifth picture-book devoted to her tangles with nasty older witches Dolores and Lavinia, this time making a New Year's resolution to be kinder to her tormentors. Unfortunately for her, Dolores and Lavinia have made resolutions to be even nastier to her, tricking her and her friends to dig out their snow-covered walkway, and refusing to invite her to their New Year's Eve party. Deciding that the tables must be turned, Emma launches a campaign to trick the two into believing they've slept for twenty years, and that the planet is being invaded by aliens...

Like its predecessors before it - Yuck!, Emma, Fried Feathers for Thanksgiving and Happy Valentine's Day, Emma! - Un-Happy New Year, Emma continues to present a more humorous, prickly take on the witchy tale. Many such stories that I have read - and witchy picture-books are a pet project of mine - would have the nasty witches reformed, or in some way softened, but James Stevenson allows Dolores and Lavinia to remain as nasty as ever, often leading to humorous hi-jinks, as Emma faces off against them and beats them at their own game. Although enjoyable, I do think these books are a bit formulaic, once you have read one or two, as the story tends to unfold in the same way. Having said that, fans of Emma the witch will still enjoy this one, as will those seeking more humorous and less sweet witchy fare.

When those two nasty witches, Dolores and Lavinia, realize that the very worst day of the year - Valentine's Day! - is around the corner, they seek out someone to ridicule, and naturally land upon good witch Emma. Finding her making homemade Valentine cards for her friends, they make themselves unpleasant, sneering at her foolishness, and deciding to play a dirty trick, by sending her some fake Valentines of their own. Finally getting fed up, Emma and her friends decide it's time to return the favor...

The fourth of James Stevenson's picture-books devoted to the adventures of Emma the witch, following upon Yuck!, Emma and Fried Feathers for Thanksgiving, Happy Valentine's Day, Emma! offers another humorous take on the witchy tale. Dolores and Lavinia are as nasty as ever, and Emma and her woodland friends as capable of turning the table on their bullies. The style here - cartoon-style artwork, comic-book panels, and the use of dialogues in speech bubbles to tell the story - is the same as in the earlier books, and the humor as pointed. Recommended to fans of the Emma books and to anyone seeking slightly less sweet Valentine's Day stories for the picture-books set.

Emma the witch, her many woodland friends, and her two witchy adversaries, Dolores and Lavinia, all return in this third picture-book devoted to their adventures. As Dolores and Lavinia mourn the coming and going of Halloween, a question from Emma reminds them of Thanksgiving. When they discover their house is still in disorder from the previous year's Thanksgiving, they trick Emma and friends into doing all the work of cleaning up, only to realize that they still don't have the holiday meal. Will they be able to trick Emma again, and steal her feast...?

Like Yuck! and Emma before it, I found Fried Feathers for Thanksgiving to be a humorously entertaining reading experience. Emma is a sympathetic heroine, and I appreciated the fact that Stevenson resists the urge to reform the perpetually nasty and duplicitous Dolores and Lavinia, who remain as dastardly as ever. This makes Emma and her animal friends' triumph over them all the sweeter! The story is told entirely through dialogue, and the illustrations, done in ink and watercolor, are structured like a comic-book, with panels and speech bubbles. I don't know that they are a personal favorite, from an aesthetic perspective, but they certainly are suited to the tone of the story. Recommended to anyone who has read and enjoyed other stories about Emma, and to anyone looking for humorous and witchy Thanksgiving tales for the picture-book set.

When witches Dolores and Lavinia begin brewing nasty potions in the woods, the local animals are less than thrilled. Then Emma, a smaller and kinder witch, appears, and asks if she too can make a potion. Turned away with sneers and jeers, she heads off on her own, greatly disheartened. The animals seek to comfort her, and together they come up with a plan to fool Dolores and Lavinia, and have a wonderful meal together into the bargain...

Published in 1984, Yuck! is the second of author/illustrator James Stevenson's picture-books about Emma the witch that I have read, following upon the eponymous Emma. I was under the impression that Emma was in fact the first book in the series, which includes six titles, but as it turns out, Yuck! was published before it. However that may be, it was an entertaining and humorously witchy tale, and featured the same cartoon-style illustrations (complete with comic-book style panels) as Emma. Recommended to James Stevenson fans, and to young picture-book readers who enjoy witchy tales with a humorous bent.

Cowboy boots, ice cream, and Christmas are fun! Going to bed early, listening to the teacher, and dominoes, not so much. A new take on a typical autobiography, Stevenson reminisces on the things he thought were fun or no fun when he was younger. I think this would be a cute book to read aloud with kids to show them what people did for fun way back when and see if they can relate to it. This book can be monotonous when read alone, but it does have redeemable qualities.

A story of a boy who's got to deal with war. After his brother leaving for the war and not longer after his father, the character has to cope with multiple aspects of the war. This book shows an aspect of World War 2 not many have seen. James puts you in the shoes of a young American child who is yet to realize what is exactly happening outside of his country. A great narrative backed by even greater minimalistic artwork that is utterly satisfying.

July, when you first read the title and see the artwork on the cover it caught my attention. Not only that but my birthday is in July, so I was very intrigued by this book. It takes you back to the simple times of Summer, the peak part where it’s really hot depending on where you live. This book is filled of funny pictures to go along with what the author is saying. Although the writing can sometimes cause confusion with the book but it goes with the overall theme of the book, fun.

This books is about war from a ten year old boy's perspective. Both his dad and brother got selected to go to war and he was left to look after his mom. He tells all of the crazy things he had to do and also gives insight on what he had to learn in school. I think this was a very good read, it was short and simple, which is easy for young kids to grasp while also still allowing the message to be understood. I think this biography shows wars point of view from the innocence of a child and does a really good job of showing what he went through.

You know, conceptually these James Stevenson "Mr. Frimdimpny" books are great -- interactive like Mo Willems' "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus" series, where the kids get to talk back to the characters in the book. But they just don't work for me (or for my 2.5yo toddler). The concept is, a big mean authority figure (male) tells the reader not to laugh, giggle, sing, etc. Then there is an ostensibly hilarious situation (a hippo dancing in a fragile glass store, a waiter knocking over a bunch of food), and the kid is supposed to not be able to help laughing. But honestly the jokes just aren't that funny -- even to a toddler and even with my best "hilarious voice". [return][return]The interactivity works better with Stevenson's "Quick, Turn the Page!" (we read it in French: "Vite, tourne la page!") where surprising things happen if you do or don't turn the page in particular ways. And also, Mo Willems' "Pigeon" series is great for kids getting to boss someone else around. (And perhaps see the absurdity of their own ploys? Nah.) But like I said it just doesn't work very well here. [return][return]Also, it doesn't help that virtually all the characters are coded male, and to the extent they are actually people, they are also white. Adding the lack of representational diversity on to the top of the not-as-funny-as-they-should-be, and I just can't recommend these books. [return][return](Review copied to both "Don't Make Me Laugh" and "No Laughing, No Smiling, No Giggling".)½

You know, conceptually these James Stevenson "Mr. Frimdimpny" books are great -- interactive like Mo Willems' "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus" series, where the kids get to talk back to the characters in the book. But they just don't work for me (or for my 2.5yo toddler). The concept is, a big mean authority figure (male) tells the reader not to laugh, giggle, sing, etc. Then there is an ostensibly hilarious situation (a hippo dancing in a fragile glass store, a waiter knocking over a bunch of food), and the kid is supposed to not be able to help laughing. But honestly the jokes just aren't that funny -- even to a toddler and even with my best "hilarious voice". [return][return]The interactivity works better with Stevenson's "Quick, Turn the Page!" (we read it in French: "Vite, tourne la page!") where surprising things happen if you do or don't turn the page in particular ways. And also, Mo Willems' "Pigeon" series is great for kids getting to boss someone else around. (And perhaps see the absurdity of their own ploys? Nah.) But like I said it just doesn't work very well here. [return][return]Also, it doesn't help that virtually all the characters are coded male, and to the extent they are actually people, they are also white. Adding the lack of representational diversity on to the top of the not-as-funny-as-they-should-be, and I just can't recommend these books. [return][return](Review copied to both "Don't Make Me Laugh" and "No Laughing, No Smiling, No Giggling".)½

I really enjoyed this poem book! It was full of fun, funny poems! I actually started laughing at most of the poems in the book. I noticed a few concrete poems. Some of the adjectives were written in fun ways such as vertically down the page instead of horizontal like all other words. For instance, one of the poems talked about how the shopping mall would be more fun if the stores were stacked on top of each other and James Stevenson wrote "stacked" vertically where each letter was on top of each other. I thought that was a fun twist to the poem. I noticed a few poems had these little twists in them.

Mr. Hacker does not like many parts of the city anymore, so he decides that he is going to move to the country where he does not have to deal with the trash on the ground, and loud ruckus of his neighborhood. Once Mr. Hacker is in the country he sees that it is so quiet. He ends up feeding and becoming friends with the cat and dog that are always coming to his house for food. This book is so sweet because it does not have much conflict in it, but it is a real struggle for Mr. Hacker when he wants each of the animals to eat their own foods. This book is great and it gives some insight into what elderly people who have no job and simply live their lives at home do all day.

Great book for kids about road trips. "That's not hitting, Jimmy. Hitting is like THIS!" So great.

This book is a collection of simple free verse poems. This book could be good for teaching kids about nutrition and food in a fun way.

I'm very confused on why the author put these specific poems together. They don't relate to each other at all. Also there is only one poem about popcorn in this collection of books. Some of the poems were very short and some were longer. Each poem described the item or thing it was talking about in great detail. The poem also provided the reader with a vivid description of what was happening to the item or thing in the poem. I just didn't like how only one poem in the book was related to the title. I also didn't like that most of the poems didn't relate to each other. There were a couple of poems in the book that talked about a dog named Chelsea, but besides that none of the other poems were related. This prevented the book from flowing and therefore doesn't allow for the reader to connect with it.

I expected much different from a book of poems. Not all poems must be deep but I read poetry to read and see my life and deeper meanings that touch my heart. The poems in this book were more of realistic events in daily life and unexpectedly did not talk much of candy corn or Halloween like I predicted it would. The poem Dawn talked about the blue skies after the black nights and symbolized the good times within bad. My favorite poem from this book was:

Coming or Going:
The screen door screeches.
The screen door slams.
Coming or going,
Going or coming,
The sounds are the same.

But what a difference
It makes to me-
Your going away,
Your coming home.

This poem exhibited parts of my past of my dad closing the screen door after court-ordered visits and gave this imagery to me, It also made me relay imagery to the future of my future husband leaving for work or coming home.½

To be honest, this book freaked me out a bit. However, I think there are some kids that would like it.This book is about an old grandpa who tells his grandchildren about a terrible Halloween that happened when he was a kid. I wouldn't read it as a read aloud, but the reading level is still appropriate for the K-2 age range.