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Once Upon a Banana

by Armstrong

Once Upon a Banana Cover

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Such a little banana causing such a big pile of trouble! How could it be? First the grocer, then the painter, next the bicycle messenger, and then — oh, no — not the baby in the carriage! An entire town turned upside down, all by a banana peel!

Caldecott Medal-winning artist David Small and award-winning author Jennifer Armstrong have created a roller-coaster ride of a picture book told in rhyming street signs that will tickle and delight readers from beginning to end and over and over again.

Review:

"Armstrong (Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat) and Small (So You Want to be President?) join forces for this sublimely silly wordless story, which brings to mind a silent short by Laurel and Hardy (who make a cameo appearance). The action gets underway even before the title page, when a street juggler's pet monkey runs off and steals a deli's outdoor stall. Blithely ignoring the sign reading 'Please put litter in its place,' the monkey tosses the banana peel on the sidewalk, thus triggering a book-long, slapstick-rich chase that covers an entire city center and ensnares a cavalcade of characters, including a passel of dogs, an airborne baby and a banana-packed dump truck. The running joke is that none of the street signs meant to impose order on urban life ('4 way stop,' 'Keep off the grass!' 'Look both ways') has any effect on damping the mounting chaos, and in the twist ending, the juggler winds up a hero. Small's loose yet precise ink lines and watercolor wash seem ideal for these crowded streets where anarchy abounds. He clearly relishes choreographing the huge, motley cast and effortlessly connects the geography of one spread to another; the pages overflow with enough pratfalls and comic asides to reward many readings. Even the closing endpapers play a role, tracing the chain of events. Ages 4-8." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Synopsis:

Caldecott Medal-winning artist Small and award-winning author Armstrong have created a roller-coaster ride of a picture book told in rhyming street signs that will tickle and delight readers from beginning to end and over and over again. Full color.

About the Author

Jennifer Armstrong is the author of numerous award-winning picture books, both historical fiction and nonfiction. Two of her picture books, Hugh Can Do and Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat, are ALA Notable Books. Her first novel Steal Away, was an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, an ALA Notable Book, and a Golden Kite Honor Book, and her novel, The Dreams of Mairhe Mehan is a BCCB Blue Ribbon Book. In 1999 her nonfiction account of Sir Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated 1914 voyage, Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance, was awarded the Orbus Pictus as well as a Boston Globe-Horn Book honor. She lives in New York State. David Small is the Caldecott Award-winning illustrator of So You Want to Be President? by Judith St. George. He received a Caldecott Honor medal for The Gardener by Sarah Stewart. He has also illustrated many other beloved picture books, which include The Library and The Journey, both by Sarah Stewart, and Imogene's Antlers, which he also wrote. He lives in Michigan with his wife, Sarah Stewart.

Product Details

ISBN:
9780689842511
ill.:
Jarvis, David,
Publisher:
Simon & Schuster/Paula Wiseman Books
Illustrator:
Small, David
Author:
Jennifer Arms
Author:
trong
Author:
Armstrong, Jennifer
Author:
Small, David
Location:
New York
Subject:
Humorous Stories
Subject:
Signs and signboards
Subject:
Bananas
Subject:
Children s humor
Copyright:
Edition Number:
1st ed.
Edition Description:
Picture book
Series Volume:
no. 137
Publication Date:
October 2006
Binding:
HARDCOVER
Grade Level:
Children/juvenile
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Yes
Pages:
48
Dimensions:
11.5 x 9 in
Children's Book Type:
Picture / Wordless
Age Level:
4-8

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Related Aisles

Once Upon a Banana Sale Hardcover
0 stars - 0 reviews
$7.98 In Stock
Product details 48 pages Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers - English 9780689842511 Reviews:
"Publishers Weekly Review" by , "Armstrong (Chin Yu Min and the Ginger Cat) and Small (So You Want to be President?) join forces for this sublimely silly wordless story, which brings to mind a silent short by Laurel and Hardy (who make a cameo appearance). The action gets underway even before the title page, when a street juggler's pet monkey runs off and steals a deli's outdoor stall. Blithely ignoring the sign reading 'Please put litter in its place,' the monkey tosses the banana peel on the sidewalk, thus triggering a book-long, slapstick-rich chase that covers an entire city center and ensnares a cavalcade of characters, including a passel of dogs, an airborne baby and a banana-packed dump truck. The running joke is that none of the street signs meant to impose order on urban life ('4 way stop,' 'Keep off the grass!' 'Look both ways') has any effect on damping the mounting chaos, and in the twist ending, the juggler winds up a hero. Small's loose yet precise ink lines and watercolor wash seem ideal for these crowded streets where anarchy abounds. He clearly relishes choreographing the huge, motley cast and effortlessly connects the geography of one spread to another; the pages overflow with enough pratfalls and comic asides to reward many readings. Even the closing endpapers play a role, tracing the chain of events. Ages 4-8." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)
"Synopsis" by , Caldecott Medal-winning artist Small and award-winning author Armstrong have created a roller-coaster ride of a picture book told in rhyming street signs that will tickle and delight readers from beginning to end and over and over again. Full color.

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