Sylvester+and+the+Magic+Pebble

__**Sylvester and the Magic Pebble**__ by William Steig __**Sylvester and the Magic Pebble**__ by William Steig //Book reviewed by: Lauren Barry// Title: __Sylvester and the Magic Pebble__ Author: William Steig llustrator: William Steig Reading Level: Pre-Kindergarten - 2nd Grade Publisher: Little Simon Books Language: English ISBN: 978-1442435605

Format: Hardcover Pages: 32 pages

Summary: In this book readers go on an adventure with Sylvester the Donkey. One day while on a walk Sylvester finds a nice red pebble. When he sees this pebble he picks it up and happens to make a wish for rain out loud. When Sylvester does this there is suddenly rain! Sylvester thinks he is just having a lucky day, but he quickly realizes that the pebble makes all of his wishes come true. On his way home from finding the pebble Sylvester runs into a lion on Strawberry Hill. Scared and not thinking quickly Sylvester wishes to become a rock. This saved him from the lion, but since he could no longer hold the pebble as a rock he could not wish to be himself again. We then see Sylvester's parents grieving their loss as Sylvester is not coming home. By the end readers can experience a happy reuniting of Sylvester and his parents-- but you'll have to read the book to find out how!

Book Review: This book was a cute read that could be used for young students. The book is recommended for students in PreK to 2nd grade, but I don't think the writing is appropriate for those levels. There are many Tier 2 and Tier 3 words that would require a lot of vocabulary instruction. I could instead see this book used in classrooms that are grades 3-5. The story however would be comprehensible for the younger grades. It was well written and was well deserving of the Caldecott Award.

About the Author: William Steig, or the "Cartoon King" was an avid cartoonist, writer, and illustrator. Steig used his writing to help provide with family with money during The Great Depression. Stein dropped out of many colleges including Yale College of Fine Arts where he lasted a mere five days. Stein however went on to complete a multitude of books, sculptures, cartoons, and then focused mostly on picture books at the end of his career.

Analysis of literary element: The illustrations in this book are incredible. They are hand drawn and students can really see the emotions of the characters throughout the story. There are so many emotions discussed in this book that having readers be able to see the physical expressions of the emotions is especially helpful. The illustrations are also all relevant to each page in general which help students with comprehension.

Related links:

http://www.amazon.com/Sylvester-Magic-Pebble-William-Steig/dp/1442435607 http://mrshumeselementsofwriting.wikispaces.com/file/view/Sylvester+and+the+Magic+Pebble.pdf http://www.notablebiographies.com/newsmakers2/2004-Q-Z/Steig-William.html