Synopsis
Famous for his tall-tales, Rip Van Winkle is hardly believed when he returns from a walk after twenty years and tells all the villagers why it took so long for him to come home. Simultaneous.
Reviews
Grade 1-3?In this version of the classic tale, Rip Van Winkle escapes to the hills to avoid work, meets little men with long beards, parties until he falls asleep, and awakens 20 years later. All of this is told in a controlled vocabulary suitable for beginning readers. However, this retelling is so watered-down that most of the story's flavor and nuances are lost. Rip goes to the woods to hunt, but in Bergen's tale he goes fishing. In the original, Rip and the little men get drunk on liquor; here, he drinks cider. Cook's watercolor and gouache illustrations are lovely, but his talent is wasted here. Introducing children to the classics is a good idea, but not at the expense of the literature. Rip Van Winkle (Little, Brown, 1988), retold and illustrated by John Howe, or Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle (Puffin, 1994), retold and illustrated by Thomas Locker, are suitable for this audience while retaining the integrity of the original story.?Elaine Lesh Morgan, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.