Friday, May 9, 2014

Just a Kite by Mercer Mayer -- OPTIONAL

Mayer, Mercer Just a Kite, 32 pgs. HarperCollins, 2014. $3.99. Content: G.

Little Critter can't wait to enter the upcoming kite flying competition, but when he goes out to practice, his kite lands in a tree and is destroyed. To help Little Critter get over his devastation, his grandfather builds him a new kite, which Little Critter happily decorates. Unfortunately, this one disappears into the wind. No problem -- his grandfather can simply make him another one, even more beautiful than the first two.

Little Critter's antics are always popular with my students, and this volume proves to be no exception. Its introduction is timely, too, with the spring winds currently swirling around outside. Unfortunately, I'm not thrilled by the example this book sets for children, when kite after kite earns a free replacement with nothing in return from Little Critter. It would have been nice if Little Critter had had to do something more than cry in order to earn a new kite, such as saving up money to buy the materials or helping his grandfather build it. Also, his dismissive, "It's just a kite my Grandpa made for me!" at the end is rather ungrateful and off-putting.

EL (K-3) -- OPTIONAL. Reviewer: Caryn

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