Once Upon a Time: 20 Bedtime Stories and Poems

Twenty-one illustrations by famed illustrator Jessie Willcox Smith are showcased in a collection of bedtime stories and poems inspired by the work of the artist

Kindergarten-Grade 2-- Prince has used 20 of Jessie Wilcox Smith's sentimental paintings of children as an excuse to create 20 equally cloying stories and poems. The Victorian era lives in this book--little girls make apple pies and play with dolls; little boys rake leaves and build sandcastles. Stereotyped lines such as "golden fingers plucked each fairy from the water with a gentle touch, shook the jewelled drops from their hair" or " 'The colors are lovely!' said the girl when she opened the box. 'The yellow is like sunshine. The orange looks the same as my breakfast juice' " abound. A poem about a brother/sister relationship is equally syrupy: "David helped to comfort her/ With love and kindly words;/ and soon her spirits lifted/ Like the wings of flying birds." Real children belong to the world of Silverstein's "Sister for Sale." Real people, of any age, will run screaming for fresh air after reading this book. --Kathleen Whalin, Public Library of Columbus and Franklin County, Reynoldsburg, Ohio
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