The Carnival of the Animals

Starred review from August 2, 2010
Along with Peter and the Wolf, Saint-Saëns’s suite has long been the go-to piece to introduce children to classical music. This delightful collection of new poems by Prelutsky serves as both helpful libretto and stand-alone treasure. The poems correlate to the animal-themed movements and neatly capture each creature’s essence. Staccato verse mirrors the hens’ frantic pace (“They scurry scurry scurry/ They fuss and fret and fret and fuss/ With feathers in a flurry”), while humor spotlights the rooster’s machismo (“He seems to think a chicken egg/ Was something he invented”). GrandPré’s (Tickety Tock) vibrant acrylic and paper collage scenes exude the same imaginative insight. The feathers of the egocentric rooster curl into a finger that points to himself as he balances an egg on his beak. Wild donkeys, who “haven’t any manners,” are crazily disruptive at a birthday party, with one inhaling the food, sporting whipped cream and sprinkles on his head. This nod to the familiar pin-the-tail party game reveals just how deeply child-savvy these two talents remain. An accompanying CD contains music performed by the Württemberg Chamber Orchestra and poems read by Prelutsky. Ages 6–12.

December 1, 2010

Gr 1-7-Prelutsky has created a group of poems that match the animals that Saint-Saens portrayed in his famous classical work, composed in 1886. Read alone or in tandem with the accompanying CD, the sounds of the animals come through in the poetic form with Prelutsky's use of repetition, alliteration, and carefully placed line breaks. Listen to "Roosters and Hens" and the "peck peck peck" and "cluck cluck cluck" bring these skittery creatures to mind. The CD allows readers to listen for the same animal through Saint-Saens's music, which brings the chickens alive in a very different way. In "Birds" children can hear the "flitter" that Prelutsky describes come alive in the tones of the flute. Having children tune in to the sounds, whether poetic or orchestral, creates a sensitivity to music in all its forms. A third dimension is added with GrandPre's vibrant art, which suggests movement through the use of collage and luminous acrylics. This is a carnival, after all, and the rich colors bring to mind the otherworldliness a carnival provides. While music teachers will want this book to complement their introduction of the sounds of the orchestra, it is also a collection children will enjoy on their own. Teachers will enjoy sharing Prelutsky's use of "just the right words" when describing each animal. It is onomatopoeia at its best.-Joan Kindig, James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA

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