Tuesday, November 17, 2009

The Mitten - Jim Aylesworth

Illustrated by Barbara McClintock
Scholastic, 2009
$16.99 32 pages
Rating: 4
Endpapers: red
A very cute & cuddly winter story.

A "once upon a time" story. The expressions on the animal's faces alone are a good reason to read this book!

A young boy every year receives a warm hat, scarf, and mittens from his grandmother. He plays and plays in the snow...and loses a mitten. Because it's cold they decide to have some hot chocolate and check for the mitten in the morning.

Well. During the night a variety of animals cuddle into the bright red mitten to keep warm - it stretches and it stretches until it's so full of cuddlying animals that it explodes. Cute, very cute.
(And then of course Gram knits a new mitten.)

This is an old folktale from the Ukraine. I'm quite sure Jan Brett has also illustrated this story. Great for comparing versions. Also a great gift for a knitting gram to give her lovin' kiddo...a hat, scarf, mittens, the book, a package of hot chocolate, and a small stuffed squirrel (or bunny or fox or bear or mouse!)

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