Summary: Were all nursery rhymes fabricated or were they simply unsolved crime mysteries? The only way we can find out is by following Binky. Who's Binky? Well, he's a cop, robbery detail in the Pinecone Division. We get to tag along with Binky as he investigates a break in at the Bears house, a missing person case of a witch who lived in a candy house, and property damage from a giant falling from the sky. See all the popular nursery tale mysteries get solved, where justice is served, and the crime rate in Pinecone drops.
Reference: Levinthal, D. & Nickle, J. (2012). Who pushed Humpty Dumpty? And other notorious nursery tale mysteries. New York, NY. Schwartz & Wade Books.
Impressions: This book had me from, "My name's Binky. I'm a cop." I found the stories to be amusing and creative. To re-visit old nursery rhymes as crime mysteries greatly impressed me. I think that this book could be enjoyed by many age groups and not just younger kids. Adults and older kids would laugh at the revisions of the tales while children would delight in recalling their nursery rhymes. The illustrations of the book were colorful and detailed enough for clarity, but not enough to overwhelm the story. Its style was reminiscent of Noir storytelling. Character faces are easily scene and instantly recognizable. This book has everything for all to enjoy.
Professional Evaluation: David Levinthal and John Nickle's WHO PUSHED HUMPTY DUMPTY? AND OTHER NOTORIOS NURSERY TALE MYSTERIES considers everything from a missing wicked witch who vanishes from a candied cottage to whether Humpty really fell off the wall - or was pushed. Clues, leads, confessions and all the elements of good detective writing are woven into a story ages 4-8 will delight in. The Picturebook Shelf ...., Random House/Knopf, ages 4-8
Midwest Book review (2012). [Review for Who pushed Humpty Dumpty? And other notorious nursery tale mysteries]. Children's Bookwatch. Retrieved from http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:3574/index.php/jbookdetail/jqbookdetail?page=1&pos=0&isbn=9780375841958.
Library Use: I can easily see this as a good writing exercise for high school students. The students should be able to identify each of the characters and recall their respective nursery rhymes. After reading the story, the students will then be challenged to re-write other nursery rhymes or fairy tales with a contemporary twist, while keeping true to the details of the tales. Then they could present their stories to the rest of the class.
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