Let's talk about If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Joffe Numeroff and illustrated by Felica Bond. I don't know why I've never opened this book before. Thanks Sari for suggesting it. It is soooooo funny. Perhaps I have a natural suspicion of series books (There are others, such as If You Give a Moose a Muffin and If You Give a Pig a Pancake). Somehow the idea that an author makes several similar books cheapens each one in my mind. Which is pretty judgmental and illogical of me. Look at Sheep in a Jeep and it's companions. Or Olivia.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie has a repetitive structure that will help kids develop their narrative skills, connecting one idea to the next. It goes like this, "If you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass of milk. When you give him the milk,...." and so on. The logic progresses until it comes all the way back around to a cookie.
Wasn't there some horrible action film that used this first line? I'm picturing Harrison Ford saying this. Help me out here.
The last thing I'll say is that this mouse has to be the cutest mouse in a picture book with his little bib overalls. Now I've got to go out and read the rest of them.
1 comment:
My kids love this book and I love the logic...because it mirrors my children's logic....(if you give Amy cereal, she will need a spoon, if you give her spoon she will realize it was not the spoon she wanted so she will get her own spoon...while she is getting her own spoon she passes by her sister Alison and wants to give her a kiss, while kissing her, Alison fears that Amy is there to steal HER cereal and screams...while Alison is screaming Andrew tires to cheer her up with a song and dance...while dancing Andrew become hungry and wants a bowl of creal which then reminds Amy that she is also hungry and wants a bowl of cereal too. :)
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