Rapunzel's Revenge

Rapunzel's Revenge Book Review

By Kelly Hartman

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hale, Shannon and Dean.  Rapunzel's Revenge. New York: Bloomsbury,  2008 ISBN 9781599900704

PLOT SUMMARY

Even though Rapunzel has all that she needs, something is missing.  One day she rebels against Mother Gothel and climbs a forbidden wall, discovering the truth that she was taken away from her parents.  As a punishment, she is banished to a tower, but finds a way to escape.  She meets up with Jack and they work together as outlaws to bring justice to a world controlled by a cruel Mother Gothel.  Will Rapunzel's brave acts and determination be enough to reunite her with her long, lost mother?  

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This is not your grandmother's fairy tale.  Shannon and Dean Hale create a fractured tale of Rapunzel in Rapunzel's Revenge, a graphic novel. Just as the title suggests, Rapunzel is far from a damsel in distress.  

Readers will find comfort in the framework of a familiar story.  They will quickly recognize the story of a young girl who is stolen from her parents and grows up under the control of a magical mother.  

Yet, the plot takes a creative twist when the authors break the mold of a young woman who awaits her Prince Charming. Rather than needing assistance, Rapunzel's actions are courageous and intelligent.  Her quest leads her to male partner, Jack, but she takes charge rather than follows. Boy and girl readers alike will feel connected to this heroine who feels compelled to the right the wrongs in her world.  

The vivid illustrations provide the readers with the stark difference between the grand villa and the outside world.  The old wild west setting becomes important to the feel of lawlessness in the land.  It makes way for Rapunzel and Jack to take matters into their own hands.  Throughout her quests and in  her final victory over Mother Gothel, Rapunzel's Revenge rings true with a theme that transcends time: Love is greater than power.   

AWARD AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Cooperative Children's Book Choice, selection 2009

Great Graphic Novels for Teens, selection 2009 

CONNECTIONS

Check out the author's blog

Writing 

Provide dialogue for "silent sequences" on pages 21-23 and 92-93.  

Gather similar themed books

Rose by Jeff Smith

Bone Vol. 1: Out from Boneville by Jeff Smith

Before Midnight: A Retelling of “Cinderella” by Cameron Dokey

Swan Lake by Mark Helprin

The Witch’s Boy by Michael Gruber 

Use this teaching guide to analyze and discuss Rapunzel's Revenge.

The Book Thief

                                                              The Book Thief Book Review

By Kelly Hartman

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Zusak, Markus.  The Book Thief. New York: Knopf Books for Young Readers,  2007 ISBN 9780375842207

PLOT SUMMARY

Liesel, a young girl living in World War II Germany, finds herself in the care of foster parents, Rosa and Hans.  In the midst of great loss and grief, Liesel clings to a book that connects her to her past; and yet she learns how to move forward as she falls in love with her new life in her community. Words, both spoken and written, become very important to Liesel as she is trusted with her family's secret to harbor Max, a young Jewish man in their basement. Books, forbidden and even the stolen kind, become an anchor for Liesel as the world around her begins to fall apart.  She learns that the story of the human condition contains both horrific pain and wonderous joy.       

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In The Book Thief, Death tells the story of Liesel, a young girl growing up in Germany right before and during World War II. Zuckus personifies Death as an outsider looking in to the same lives that intertwine with Liesel's.  Due to the nature of the World War II and the Holocaust, this point of view may seem morbid, but the reader will soon realize the creativity and necessity to the author's purpose of showing the human condition at its worst and at its best.   

Zuckus takes the reader on an emotional journey with the main character, Liesel.  Liesel begins the story as a frail, grief-stricken girl who has night terrors, bed-wetting incidents, and cannot read the very book that she stole from her brother's gravesite.  Yet, she blossoms to a brave girl who helps to keep her family's secret of a Jew living in the basement.  Believable dialogue develops each character: foul-mouthed, yet nurturing foster mother, Rosa; tender-hearted and selfless foster father, Hans; competitive, yet loyal best friend, Rudy; and creative and determined, Max.  

Zuckus dips in and out of Death's narration and into the Liesel's life.  As the story unfolds, Death foreshadows the demise of the characters, both beloved and despised, within the story; and yet, Zuckus cleverly keeps the reader guessing as to the actual moment when Death will arrive.  Just like real life, no one will escape Death.  

The topic and theme is most appropriate to older audience of middle schoolers or above.    

AWARD AND REVIEW EXCERPTS 

Sydney Taylor Book Award, winner 2007

USSBY, Outstanding International Books 2007

Margaret A. Edwards Award, winner 2014

CONNECTIONS

Use the Audio Excerpt to discuss personification.  Create a bubble map describing the narrator(using text evidence from the passage). Infer the name of the narrator using description.  

Use this Reader's Guide for discussion questions. 

Teach theme: Good vs. Evil (The Holocaust)

Discuss point of view comparing the book with the Movie Trailer 

Hello, Universe

 Hello, Universe Book Review

By Kelly Hartman

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kelly, Erin Entrada.  Hello, Universe. New York: Greenwillow Books,  2017 ISBN 9780062414151

PLOT SUMMARY

Virgil Salinas, a shy eleven year old, thinks that he is an utter failure because he can't talk to Valencia, his crush.  Kaori, a middle school physic tries to give him guidance, but it seems that too many things are against him, especially Chet, the bully.  Yet, the "universe" has bigger plans and brings these three misfits together in a series of "coincidences".  Will Chet get the best of Virgil?  Will Kaori help Virgil speak to Valencia?  In this epic adventure, these misfits find that life is ultimately about a series of human connections.  

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Erin Entrada Kelly creatively weaves a story about the coincidences that occur in any given day.  

Readers will enjoy the change of point of view told through the "ping-ponging" of each character's perspective from chapter to chapter.  Within this clever design, characters are believable, and well developed.  Each character's inner voice and actions give the reader insight into their nature.  For instance, during the grocery store incident, Virgil is exposed as timid, while Valencia emerges as courageous and unaffected by Chet's bullying. Likewise, Chet's description of his father, and Virgil's description of his family help to explain nurture over nature.  

Within the story, it is apparent that the settings are not random places.  Instead, each place--the grocery store, the park and forest, and the well--provide a way for the reader to see the connection in the misfits' lives. Kelly makes them a common ground for characters with very different lives and upbringings.    

Readers will identify with a grandmother who has a story to go with every situation. Filipino folklore may be the cause of some of Virgil's anxiety.  And yet when he meets his fears at the bottom of the well, he uses his grandmother's influence to keep him afloat. Ruby San Salvador speaks to his heart and gives him the courage that he needs to come to terms with the universe.    

Kelly gives the story a light-hearted feel with humor and yet digs deep to issues that bring about real emotion.  

AWARD AND REVIEW EXCERPTS 

Newbery Medal Winner, 2018

SLJ Best Books of the Year, 2017

“This reading community celebrates the panoply of American literature for children published in 2017. We are delighted to share our selections with the world,” said Newbery Medal Committee Chair Cecilia P. McGowan. 

Told from four intertwining points of view—two boys and two girls—the novel celebrates bravery, being different, and finding your inner bayani (hero).  “Readers will be instantly engrossed in this relatable neighborhood adventure and its eclectic cast of misfits.”—Booklist

CONNECTIONS

Book Trailer 

Peek inside Kelly's notebook from Hello, Universe. 

Spark discussion and thematic connections with this resource guide.

Hello, Universe Reader's Theater