Module 1: Intro to Children's Literature

Module 1/SLIS5420

Winston the Book Wolf
By Marni McGee and Ian Beck

Summary:
This is a cute little book about a hungry wolf name Winston.  The thing is that Winston was hungry for books!  As you can imagine this got him in trouble at the library as he would rip, tear, eat his way through many lovely books.  However, as luck would have it a girl name Rosie in a red cloak came along and helped Winston see that he didn't have to eat books with his teeth, but that he could eat them with his eyes (a.k.a. Reading).  Toward the end of the book Winston sneaks his way back into the library by pretending to Rosie's grandmother and reads to other boys and girls.

Citation:
McGee, Marni, and Ian Beck. (2006). Winston the Book Wolf. New York: Walker.

Beyond and Between:
This delightful read was a twist to the Red Riding Hood story. This connection to Red Riding Hood automatically provides the reader with an opportunity to engage in the story line while being surprised in the twists and turns of the plot line.  The flow of the book through words and illustrations really carried the reader with Winston in his journey of learning to read.

One of the best parts was how the illustrations incorporated the pictures and words together in such a way that children struggling to read could more easily guess what the word maybe.  For example, as Winston was learning read he "ate all sorts of words... like sunset, swoosh, and rambunctious".  The illustrations included a sunset, Winston swooshing along by leaping, and Winston playing the drums rambunctiously.  Even though the words maybe difficult to various readers, the illustrations provide the right scaffolding to encourage the reader to figure out the word.  The short paragraphs also provide un-daunting groups of reading sections for a reluctant readers to follow.   Over all, with the friendly illustrations, flow of words and pictures, and the reader friendly short paragraphs, this books is a inviting book for your beginning reader.

Reviews:
School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2 --Winston loves to sink his teeth into a good book. Ignoring the "No Wolves Allowed" sign posted on the library door, he rushes inside for a quick nibble. Rosie, a little girl wearing a red hooded sweatshirt, helps him understand that "Words taste even better when you eat them with your eyes" and teaches him to read. With his love of language, Winston quickly develops a taste for "sweet and juicy words like sunset and swoosh and rambunctious." When he runs out of books to read, he borrows a frilly dress and returns to the library disguised as "Granny Winston." He registers for a library card and enthusiastically leads a storyhour session. Beck's charming crosshatched illustrations show a fairy-tale cast of characters. The clever design includes a wolf-bite-sized cutout cover. This is a delicious treat of a tale for young book lovers.
Ludke, L. (2006). Winston the Book Wolf. School Library Journal, 52(12), 108.

Suggested Uses:
This book would be great as a part of a "meet and greet: book character night" for parents and children.  The idea is to flesh out different characters in the books that children commonly read and are associated with known stories.  This could have a theme focus on Fairtale Characters or specific to one character such as the "Big Bad Wolf".  This could  work in conjunction with October and Haloween, encouraging the children to come dressed up as their favorite book character of choice.