Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic, by Emily Jenkins caught my attention right away when it first came out last year, both for its title and its illustrator. Paul O. Zelinsky is one of my favorite illustrators with a very diverse style. He is capable of the Renaissance, painterly beauty displayed in his Caldecott winning version of Rapunzel as well as in his Caldecott Honor winners Hansel and Gretel and Rumplestiltskin. With his third Caldecott Honor winner, Swamp Angel, his more playful style is evident. It is on display at full speed in his magnificent pop-up version of Wheels on the Bus - the only pop-up book I have ever bought, and I bought it twice. I was also excited because it seemed like, finally, someone had written a stand alone chapter book for 2nd or 3rd grade readers.
I was not disappointed, although I have to admit that I had to recalibrate my critical reader's eye. I'm sure you have all read a beginning reader book. When I read a book like that I don't expect it to have a complex plot or diverse characters and vocabulary and I am alright with that. When I read a chapter book I expect it to have plot, dialog and diverse characters and vocabulary. But, when I read a book written at a 2nd grade reading level, I can't expect these thing for obvious reasons. It is within these narrow strictures that Emily Jenkins crafts her intriguing story of three toys and their lives with a little Girl.
My first instinct was to compare this book to Ann Martin and Laura Godwin's The Doll People (also illustrated by a Caldecott winning artist, Brian Selzncik) and, in many ways it is similar in that it is a "secret life of dolls" story. However, the beauty and simplicity of this book is that it is six short stories that follow the same characters rather than one, long story with a problem and a solution. Each chapter follows the toy buffalo named Lumphy, the toy sting ray named StingRay and a red ball named Plastic and the adventures they have when their little Girl is at school or sleeping. They each have distinct personality traits that are developed over the course of the story. Lumphy is prone to anxiety and stomach upset, StingRay is an insecure know-it-all and Plastic is sort of a benevolent, kind, mother figure who is quick with a comforting word. Oddly enough, it seems like Plastic is the one character who is portrayed with the most depth and feeling and is the most "adult-like" character.
It is Plastic who, when reading a book on animals, questions her own identity and where she fits into her world. It is plastic who, undaunted by StingRay's false tales of terror on the beach, bravely limps home after a dog (the possible shark) catches her and punctures her during this visit. Lumphy has his own adventures, including seeking wisdom from the Girl's bath towel, Tuk Tuk, and the realization that his wish to sleep on the Girl's bed along with StingRay is not what he really wants after all, resulting in the loss of his tail. It is Plastic who assures him that none of the tough buffaloes have tails. StingRay is duplicitous, neurotic and a know it all, a bit like Rabbit in A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh. Although it is Plastic who can provide the definition of it, it is StingRay who practices subliminal messages on the Girl. It is Stingray who often speaks in verse and who is most concerned with being included in a birthday celebration and wether or not he is loved most above all.
I think this book works best when read silently. There is quite a bit of dialog and, unless you are good at voices, it can be hard to follow when read out loud. Also, there are so few books written at this level that it is important for kids to have the chance to read them on their own. Just out this month in hardcover, Toy Dance Party: Being the Adventures of a Bossy-Boots StingRay, a Courageous Buffalo, and a Hopeful, Round Someone Called Plastic.
If your child likes this book, suggest The Doll People Trilogy by Ann M Martin and Laura Goodwin, pictures by Brian Selznick, which is about two grade reading levels higher. And, there are two fabulous picture books by Mini Grey, Traction Man is Here and Traction Man Meets Turbo Dog. The illustrations of this action figure and his pet scrubbing brush as they are played with throughout the day are hilarious, as is Grey's take on the life of a doll.
2 comments:
I thought I should let you know that I would never have picked this book up if you hadn't liked it so much. Just from the description, I would have rejected it based on talking toys (and towels?!), and a storyline that sounds awfully derivative -- Toy Story meets The Velveteen Rabbit. Yet I ordered it anyway.
I missed your note about not doing it as a read-aloud, and the girls requested it before bedtime one night, so we tried it out loud together over the last few nights. I don't recall ever doing a read-aloud chapter book with them that had them laughing out loud like this one. They find it hilarious, and I've quite enjoyed the subtle humor too. They just love the characters and the clever tone.
So, once again...thanks.
I'm really glad to hear that you overcame your initial impression and gave it a try. I have to admit, even after reading it and writing the review -and trying to read it out loud to my four year old son who isn't quite mature enough to grasp the subtleties of a wise old talking bath towel- I still had reservations about it. I like to think of it as a really long picture book.
But, once again, you and your girls have tested my theories and proved me right! (at least in a small test group of three...)
One thing that I have realized since starting this blog is that I enjoy and dislike different things about kid's books than a kid might and, while these reviews are written for parents, I really need to get into a "kid" way of thinking when I decide what makes a book worth reading and recommending.
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