Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude
Ratings1
Average rating4
15
Ratings1
Average rating4
Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude. And Alice is Alice. And Gertrude and Alice are Gertrude and Alice. And you are welcome to join them for tea. But beware, for there you will find a bear in a chair, just barely scary. And here is a beard with a man attached to it. And then, of course, some words might appear, uninvited, but delighted in spite of their light bulbs. But, but, but, but—that doesn't make any sense! Yes! In a story inspired by the oh-so-modern groundbreaking writing of Gertrude herself, not a lot makes sense. Even so, the oh-so-popular author Jonah Winter, and the ever-so-popular illustrator Calef Brown, and the most popular poodle of all time, Basket, invite you to enter the whimsical world of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas.
Reviews with the most likes.
Thoughts:
Go ahead and call it a children's picture book, but I think you are wrong; the children I read this book to looked at me in bewilderment. It looks like a picture book. It reads like a picture book. But reading it to young children is like asking junior high students to read Great Expectations; it can be read, but it should be saved for those old enough to really appreciate it.
I loved it. It would probably be among my top picks for best nonfiction picture book. It's bright and colorful. The text mimics the style of the subject, poet Gertrude Stein. It's funny.
As Gertrude Stein might say, A picture book is a picture book is a picture book is a picture book. But sometimes it's not.
A Sample:
“Talk talk talk talk. Laugh laugh. More talk.
Laugh. Okay. Enough.
And now it's time for tea.
Teatime is teatime.
And look who's here,
in time for tea.
It's Pablo Picasso the Spanish artist.
Pablo Picasso looks so angry but no.
Pablo Picasso is Pablo
Picasso.
He just invented Modern art
which is not the same thing as being angry
but then again maybe it is.
Maybe it is
and maybe it isn't.
Then again maybe it is.
It's so hard to invent
Modern art.
Maybe it is
and
maybe it isn't.
Maybe.”
Children's Comments:
Sydney, 6, said, “Never want to read. It's wacky.”
Vanessa, 6, said, “It's weird because they have a dog named Basket.”
Joey, 6, said, “The title was weird.”
Jony, 6, said, “The bear was in a chair!”
Children's Ratings: 3, 1, 4, 1, 3, 4, 5, 2
