Granite Baby by Lynne Bertrand is a beautiful historical fiction picture book about five giantess sisters.
Each of the sisters had a special talent. Jade could twist the river like a rag in her hands. Em whittled wood. Golda was handy with string. People said Ruby was half bear, she was that strong. And Beryl was the finest stonecutter in the Granite State. No mountain was too big for Beryl. (p. 4).However, in an attempt to prove her prowess, Beryl creates a baby out of granite. They named the baby, "Lil Fella," but quickly realized that with all of their skills combined, the sisters did not have the ability to soothe and care for a baby so tiny and human. Bertrand incorporates a folktale feel into this story by using "country" and "old-timey" language, as in the following, "From afternoon till midnight, and midnight till dawn, Lil Fella cried, wailed, screamed, and hollered till you could actually see his yellin' in the crisp New Hampshire air" (p. 11).
Kevin Hawkes' painting illustrations are beautiful. He perfectly captures the scale of the giantesses and the humans exploring their creations. Both the text and the illustrations range from awe-inspring to hilarious throughout the text, while also maintaining the familiar feel of a folktales.
Some of the words used in the text will be unfamiliar to many readers, but the large illustrations and the context of the story will not make these unfamiliar words a distraction. This would be a great book for all elementary readers and/or listeners to talk about tall tales and folk tales. It could also be used to talk about how to soothe babies or about regions and their products or geography, as many New England geographical features are mentioned
I cannot get over the fact that the giantess sisters named the baby "Lil Fella." I am very interested in finding out how that name came to be, especially since the sisters' names are also so unusual.
ReplyDeleteA tall tale featuring strong independent women unsure how to care for a baby? Set in New Hampshire and evoking that great North Eastern twang? This New England girl is putting it on hold at the library right now. In the cover illustration, is his wailing captured in the black text pouring out from his mouth? Sounds about right. Love the perplexed looks of the women as they gaze down at him shrieking.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard this story before but it sounds so interesting! I love tall tales. I think that they add something fun and interesting to the classroom and play on the imagination of the students. Like Christine, this may have to go on hold at the library...
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