Synopsis
Retells the folktale about three billy goats who trick a troll that lives under the bridge
Reviews
PreSchool-Grade 3-The latest in a flock of retellings, featuring a lengthy text, pastoral illustrations, and a watered-down ending. Arnold's version reads nicely, as he fleshes out the story with descriptive detail. The Gruffs live in a "lovely green valley nestled high in the mountains," where there "were no wolves or coyotes or mountain lions to disturb them." The troll, with his "growly scowly voice," has teeth "huge and crooked" and "smelled rather badly of the muck and mire in which he lived." The watercolor, pencil, and ink illustrations depict an appealing wilderness landscape complete with distant mountains, crisp evergreens, and assorted wildlife. Subtle ink lines add texture to the slightly washed out green and brown tones. With his long carrot nose and pointed ears, the troll comes across as being more mischievous than menacing. After the climactic scene, he is sent spinning through another double-page spread, and sinks heavily into the river. Where are the dramatic grinding hooves and tearing horns of earlier versions? With its sophisticated language and added details, this edition might appeal to older readers. However, if you like your folktales undiluted, stick with retellings by Paul Galdone (Clarion, 1979), Marcia Brown (Harcourt, 1991), and Glen Rounds (Holiday, 1993), the pick of this year's litter.
Joy Fleishhacker, New York Public Library
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Enlisting a clean design and a straightforward approach, this comely retelling revivifies an old, familiar tale. All the original elements remain intact, down to the significant "TRIT-TROT, TRIT-TROT," as each goat passes over the troll-inhabited wooden bridge. Arnold's goat-heroes are as natural and winsome as his troll-nemesis is taciturn and suspicious. Well-honed page-turns augmented by charming character progressions make this version particularly accessible. The inherent satisfaction of the trickster theme is heightened by cool-hued watercolors, which are given a sculptural feel through use of meticulous cross-hatching. The Rocky Mountain setting is conveyed in its pristine beauty, endowing the book with the timelessness befitting a classic. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
While Glen Rounds's version of this favorite (p. 378) is the best in a generation, this one and Bender's (below) each have their own merits. Arnold's discursive text is padded out with rather superfluous explanations, but it reads smoothly and will painlessly stretch reading vocabularies. His precisely cross- hatched illustrations set the tale in the mountains of the American West; the handsome goats are amusingly haughty yet realistic, while the troll is a squat, sturdy little man with pointy nose and ears, resembling a figure carved in wood (he ends up in the river, where he ``sank like a stone and never was heard from again''). Not essential, but an attractive addition. (Folklore/Picture book. 4-8)ver was heard from again.'' Not essential, but an attractive addition. (Folklore/Picture book. 4- 8) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Ages 3-6. Set in a "lovely green valley nestled high in the [Rocky] mountains," this version of a familar story has a decidedly American locale and includes some nice touches--from the troll's "growly, scowly voice" to the "extremely deep, and extremely cold river, where the troll sank like a stone and was never heard from again." The watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations are clear and distinct enough to make the book useful for reading aloud to small groups, and the slightly subdued palette emphasizes the verdant green of the grassy pastures, which are, after all, the heart of the tale. This should be a popular retelling, even in libraries already having several different versions on the shelf. Janice Del Negro
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